Change in Winter Plans
by unobtrusivescribe
Summary: The Hardy Boys come home to find an unexpected guest that leads them into some interesting adventures during her stay.
1. Unexpected

The airport was busy, but it was filled mostly with those trying to return after Thanksgiving holiday. The older man with slightly graying hair and a strong build found the arrival area quite easy to maneuver. Debating on whether or not to park and meet the young traveler inside or hopefully recognize her from the car, he failed to notice his phone buzzing incessantly. For a well-known PI, he was oblivious to the bundle of blue rushing to the car from the recently opened sliding doors. Brought out of his thoughts by a knocking on the window and the flutter of thin blue stick, Mr. Hardy unlocked the vehicle and got out into the brisk air.

"Here, I'll get your luggage, just hop in the front seat, Kailey."

She gave him a smile, hidden by the various clothes she wrapped around her body to stay warm and replied, "Thanks Mr. Hardy."

Quickly the bags were in the trunk and Kailey was slowly defrosting in the front seat. Though she was not in the cold long, this weather was not something she was used to. Mr. Hardy kept the smile to himself as looked over his chilled passenger. In no time were they off towards Elm Street. Conversation was light because she was sleepy and the news played throughout the small car. He had not seen this young woman for quite a few years and was amazed at how much she had grown. Nevertheless, his boys were going to be surprised when they returned from school this afternoon.

She was jolted awake when the car stopped in the driveway. As Mr. Hardy collected her luggage and directed her to follow him, Kaily took a deep breath and collected herself. She made a mad rush to the door; thankfully he was fumbling with the keys and had not noticed.

Moments later, a women with blue eyes and blond hair welcomed her husband and the young lady into the threshold. Eagerly Kailey stepped in dragging the bags and shutting out the cold. The newcomers shaked off their outer garments and followed the voice of Mrs. Hardy.

"Laura, thank you so much."

Mrs. Hardy slyly smiled and focused her attention on the young woman sitting at the table choking down the hot beverage. "Sweetie, I know you warm to get warm, but burning your mouth isn't the best way about it."

Kailey set down and smiled at her hostess, "Sorry, I was extremely thirsty. The marshmellows helped." Both women giggled.

"How was the flight?" Mr. Hardy asked, getting down to business.

"Okay as one could expect for 5:30 am. It was harder to sleep than I thought it would be. So, sorry for the lack of conversation in the car ride over Mr. Hardy."

"It's fine, it was a short drive, you missed nothing."

Kailey smiled, "I hope my coming here is not an intrusion on your family."

Mrs. Hardy quickly responded, "No, it's not a problem Kailey. Your father is a good friend of Fenton's and we have a guest room readily available."

"Good, I was just worried as this was slightly sudden trip. Don't worry, I have all my school work with me, so I won't be in your hair too much. I am just grateful for this short notice acceptance."

"It's no problem. Now, lunch will probably be in a little while. I can bring you up to your room when you're finished. I'm going to be in and out of my study for the rest of the day. Just let me know." Mr. Hardy said as he left to bring up her bags.

The women just gabbed about the weather and clothes for a while, then announcing she was finished Kailey proceeded to knock on the study door. Mr. Hardy showed her the room, while Mrs. Hardy prepared lunch. Kailey wasted no time organizing her stuff in the dresser. She let her father know everything was going well with a short text, having already called him at the airport. Then she slowly pulled out her notebooks and textbooks. Taking her time she washed up and mulled over what to work on first. Minutes later Mrs. Hardy knocked on the door and invited her down to lunch.

"This is great!" Kailey commented dunking the crusts of grilled cheese into the tomato soup.

"Thanks dear. It's all in an hour's work," Mrs. Hardy chuckled as her husband came in.

"Smells delicious," He noted as he took the seat next to his wife.

"Who was that?" She inquired.

"Oh, it was just a follow up for one of my cases."

"Cases?" Kailey asked, intrigued.

"Yes, well, I'm a detective."

"Really?" Kailey was mesmerized by this new information gathered on her host.

"Yes, he has quite the PI rep in the west coast," Mrs. Hardy boasted.

"Amazing! I never knew that. I thought you worked with law enforcement. How's having your own agency?"

"I rather enjoy the ability to choose my cases at will and not have the need to follow some restrictions the police force holds."

"Fascinating. Do you have a partner, or is this just run by you?"

"Well, yes I have a partner Sam Radley, and then my boys help me out from time to time," Mr. Hardy replied.

"Your boys?"

Mrs. Hardy chuckled, chancing a glance at her husband currently stuffing his face. "Yes, we have two sons, Joe's about your age and Frank is a year older."

"Wow, my dad really told me nothing. Just you are staying with my ol' bud Fenton for a while until I sort something out down here. It's not like I could say no, so like it or not I was shipped up north."

"Your father's a character that's for sure," he stopped as the phone rang from far away, it wasn't the one in the kitchen. "Sorry," he managed as he briskly left the table to answer it.

As the meal was finished and they were just scraping their plates during the conversation both women got up simultaneously with their plates. Each grinned and Kailey followed her hostess to clean it off.

"No, you're a guest, I have this hon," Mrs. Hardy insisted.

Kailey went upstairs and grabbed her books. Noticing it would feel too empty and quite on the second floor she brought everything down with her. She took up residence on the comfy couch, while Mrs. Hardy cleared up the table. Deeply wishing to become interested into American History, Kailey began reading a chapter from her history book. Mrs. Hardy held back a laugh as she tried to get the young woman's attention an hour later. Kailey was in deep sleep with the book on her chest and pen in hand.

The young girl only slightly stirred a few hours later when two booming voices could be heard after the front door was closed loudly.

"Frank, come on,"

"Shhhhh," Mrs. Hardy begged of her two sons as they were not hiding their presence.

The dark-haired boy peered behind his mother and looked at her with confusion. This look caused the other boy to side step the pair and blatantly ask, "Whoa, who's that babe on the couch?"


	2. Revelations

Thank you to the reviews from caranath and leyapearl! This chapter is a bit of fluff, don't worry the action will come soon

Disclaimer: I don't own the Hardy family or their friends and associates.

Chapter 2

Mrs. Hardy gave her youngest son a stern look, then pleaded to the older, more reserved one.

Frank understood his mother, shaking his head at his brother's lack of thinking before speaking. His mother wanted quiet. Not wanting to disturb the poor girl further, Frank pulled his brother out of the living room and nudged him to grab his stuff. Quickly he zipped his lip before Joe could utter a sound. Both boys went up the stairs.

"Really, couldn't you keep a thought in once in a while?"

"Well, I guess I could," Joe slowly replied to an agitated Frank and smirked. "So who do you think that was and what is she doing here?"

Frank rolled his eyes as he began sorting through his school bag, "I don't know Joe, we'll just have to ask dad."

"Ugh," Joe sighed, dragging his items through their jack and jill bathroom.

Barely a minute later Frank and his father came into Joe's room. They were looking to talk. That meant diverting his attention from the computer screen for more than a minute at a time. Joe turned his desk chair around.

"Okay, well I expect you have some questions about our guest," both nodded, so Mr. Hardy continued, "She is staying here as a request from her father. He was an old friend of mine. She needs to be kept safe out of state for a certain period of time, until he has the problem under control."

"That's all dad?" Joe said skeptically, "It seems like there's something you're not telling us."

"Son, it doesn't matter to you. If you want to know more you can ask her. Right now let her rest until before dinner so she can wash up. She had an early and long flight."

Frank said, "Okay dad, sounds good." He gave Joe a look to drop it and their father left.

Joe started, a bit too enthusiastically, "So, let's do some research."

"How can we? We didn't even get her name," Frank realized.

"No worried bro, I have my ways." Frank took a look to what his brother was so avidly staring at the computer screen for. It was a search for a girl named Kailey McDowell.

"What? How did you get this?" Frank asked taken aback that he didn't get it, thinking that he must have missed something.

Seeing the wheels turning, Joe chuckled, "Don't sweat it bro, I grabbed the name off her luggage tag."

"Oh," was all his brother managed, surprised at his own lack of detective skills put to use.

Not daring to write a thing down, as she might think it weird if she happened to come across it, the boys put everything to memory that they found. Though it wasn't much, just a picture of her in high school on a cheerleading team and in some other clubs.

Frank nudged Joe, "Hey, let's get some homework done. I don't believe our teachers will take an excuse that we were researching our visitor. Come on, we can ask her later."

Joe begrudgingly agreed and pulled out his Pre-Calculus book in a less than eager manner as Frank went to his own room to pull out his AP- Calc book.

…..

There was a smell in the air that was delicious. It brought her back from her dreams. Her train of thought wandered to who was cooking the mouth-watering meal. At home they would usually wait for her, but wait she wasn't at home. This wasn't the blue fluffy, man-eating couch or chair. It was a light green comfy couch with cute accent pillows. There was a comfortable atmosphere, different than the busy one at home. Slowly she sat up, taking in her surroundings. It was darker outside, and a blond-haired woman was busy in the kitchen. Neatly placing her history book on the coffee table, Kailey moved her sleeping limbs around. With circulation back intact, she made her way upstairs unnoticed by the entire Hardy family.

She smiled at the homely features of the bathroom, it was neat with personality. The bathroom at home was a disaster, but that could only be expected living with boys. Kailey took her time cleaning up. Once awake she retreated to the guest room, trying to avoid the creaky floorboards with no avail. The noise caught the attention of the younger Hardy who was closer to the room. He dropped his studying pretense, realizing it wasn't a parent and snuck out of his room. He leaned against the door frame and cleared his throat. The young girl before him jumped up.

"Hi, I'm Joe," he grinned and stepped forward.

"Hi, I'm Kailey. Sorry I was startled. I was in the zone, going through my papers."

"Oh, that's completely understandable. You should see my brother Frank. Man, when gets into something, usually a book, he is in his own little world. I found the only way to get his attention is to hit him."

"Is that so? I'm sure he appreciates that."

"You betcha!" Joe laughed, "So do you mind if I sit down? Or are you busy?"

"No, you're fine," Kailey sat next to him on the bed and continued. "I was just looking for this one sheet with the list of instructions my teacher handed out in class last week. I can't seem to find it anywhere."

"Bummer, maybe you left it at home or let someone borrow it?"

"That's it!" she jumped from the bed and scooped up her phone, avidly texting away.

Not comfortable with the ongoing silence of her furiously tapping the keyboard, Joe asked, "So what brings you up here, in this particular weather nevertheless?"

"Hmm?" she looked up, "Oh, yeah. Well, my dad thought it would be safer if I stayed out of town for a little while."

"Why?"

She looked at him, then to the side, pausing before answering. "I actually don't know much. He was pretty brief with me last night when he came back from the office. Yeah, I know why was he there, blah, blah blah, it's a holiday. You have to understand, he's an important man and quite a workaholic. When someone rings him up, he leaves, no questions asked. So I accepted that he would tell me in due course."

"What did he say?"

"Not much, just-" Kailey was broken off by an out of breath huff from the door. 6'1'' brown haired boy was giving the scene a once over before he spoke.

"Hello."

"Hey Frank!" Joe answered grinning at his brother's flustered appearance at the door. "Kailey and I were just catching up. You can hop in if you want."

Warily Frank said, "Okay, only if you don't mind my intrusion."

Kailey replied, "Really it's fine. I was just telling Joe that my dad told me last night to be prepared to leave early today. Therefore I was sleeping on the couch earlier because I left at the crack of dawn. I grilled him about why the sudden need to ship me off, what about my brothers, and who was I staying with. Only thing he told was that he was going to put me with an old friend of his, Fenton Hardy. I only got that information when we got to the airport and I learned I was going to New York."

"Wow, that's next to nothing to go on," Joe added, earning a look from his brother.

Kailey smiled and said, "Yeah, I know. Now you see why I am slightly frustrated?"

"Most certainly. We can help you out if you need it."

"What do you mean help me out?"

"Well, Frank and I are detectives, so I'm sure we can find out in no time, if your day doesn't tell you soon."

"Oh really? Following in your father's footsteps?"

"Yep," Joe answered quickly, "We're pretty good solving cases on our own when not helping our dad."

"Neat, but hey, I'm sure he'll let me know soon enough," Kailey said.

"Kailey, if you need anything just let us know," Frank tried to comfort her, getting an "oh, come on" look from his younger brother.

"Thanks," she smiled. Then, Joe went into a detailed account of his "boring" day. It was only considered boring because it was routine. There were no cases and nothing happening in his romantic life.

Finally Frank added, "Oh, I happen to enjoy routine, we don't need you getting beat up or kidnapped every day of the week. Then how would you get your homework done?" That remark earned him a smack in the head by a decorative pillow. They all burst out into laughter, which was heeded by a short call from downstairs.

"Dinner is ready," flowed the sweet voice of Laura Hardy, inviting the growing teens down. In no time the three of them were sharing jokes and comments around the table.

"I'm glad to see you are all getting along so well," observed Mr. Hardy as he and his wife took their places at the table. They all smiled and dug into the spaghetti and meatballs with bruschetta.

Kailey took a breath from chowing down and told Mrs. Hardy, "This is an absolutely lovely meal!"

"Thank you. I'm glad you are enjoying it," Laura responded, then turned her attention to her boys, "how was school."

"Good" and "Gmmf" were the responses. Mr. Hardy took over, "So how's the homework load for the night?"

"Eh, not too bad dad," Joe managed between bites.

"Same here, just a little more to finish up. So how is your case load?" Frank looked at his father, trying to decipher his face because there was a slight hesitation before the response.

"Oh, it's fine son. Just finishing up some loose ends," Mr. Hardy said before gulping down his drink. This short answer grabbed attention of everyone at the table. Usually there was no problem disclosing the details of the case. The boys glanced at one another. Frank took up the conversation, knowing his brother would not treat it delicately.

"That's good dad. So does that mean you'll be staying at home, just working out of the office for the rest of the week?"

"Probably. I may be asked to go out of town to help out a friend, but more than likely I'll be with Sam."

"Who may need your help? Is there anything Joe or I can do?"

Mr. Hardy finally looked up from his meal. "No," he said realizing Kailey was there, "You boys need to focus on the last weeks of school before winter break."

Understanding that topic was no longer open for discussion Joe broke the awkward silence due to follow. "Yeah, I know. Pre-Calculus is going to be tough."

"I could help you out, if you need it," said Kailey, to everyone's surprise.

"Really?" Joe asked.

"Yeah, it's no problem. I actually didn't mind that class too much. I'm actually studying AP Calc right now, so any questions, feel free to lay them on me."

It was Frank's turn to close his mouth that slowly opened at this revelation of her a year younger taking the same class as him. Noticing it got quiet again he said, "I'm also taking that class."

Then the conversation continued for a while about math and it's usefulness in real life, and then moved on to the nasty weather brewing outside. Finally everyone was done eating. Mrs. Hardy forbid Kailey to help clear the dishes, so she went upstairs, while the three men went into the study.

With the door closed, Joe could no longer hold his patience and blurted, "Dad, what was that?"

Though he gave him a stern look from his bluntness, Mr. Hardy replied, "I could not tell you in front of her. It might be her dad who needs my help."

"So, dad, it was pretty obvious when you blatantly avoided the topic," Frank observed.

"Oh," Mr. Hardy said, "I guess I wasn't thinking, nor prepared to say anything. I have been pretty busy today."

"Doing what?"

"I told you finishing a case," he paused, "and helping out her father."

"With what dad? We don't deserve this cloak and dagger routine," Frank urged.

"Now sons, I don't want you getting involved okay. That is the main reason I have kept some information from you."

"Yes" was the quick reply, "Continue, dad."

"You remember a few years ago around school starting I had to leave to help out with a serious kidnapping case?"

"Yep," Joe said.

"Wait, the one where the woman wasn't caught?"

"Yes that's it. And not too long ago she was sighted not too far from where Kailey lives."

"Why would that matter?"

"She was kidnapped by that woman."


	3. Understanding

Thank you to the reviews of caranath, leyapearl, and EDuse2! Also, Thanks to my friend who checked over this chapter before I submitted it:)

D: I do not own the Hardy family, their friends, nor their associates.

Chapter 3

Kailey was sitting comfortably in the guest bed with her computer on her lap. She needed to see if her intuition was correct. Was she in danger? Why did her father not elaborate if she was in danger? Oh, well, there she was, egging on her slow-paced laptop. One just needs to know how to navigate the web to be able to locate a certain person within recent police data, so it was no problem for her to find the name she was looking for after a few minutes of sifting through information. The statement: Elena Richardson last sighted in Texas two days ago sent a shiver down her spine. The rest of the information regarding her current return to civilization was nonexistent, leading to the assumption that her under FBI jurisdiction.

She let out a sigh. That woman was back with vengeance, no doubt. She debated on what to do. There was no easy way to grab the information. If she used her codes for the FBI database, then people would be alerted another person outside the allowed group of agents was accessing the files. Kailey was stuck between a rock and a hard place. For her own sake she needed to know, but couldn't necessarily let everyone else know she knew.

It was decided. She put her computer aside and went on a search for her phone. On the way to the living room, she was taken aback by the explosion of male voices from the study. Concerned and curious Kailey made her way over there after snatching her phone off the counter.

"WHAT!" and "So what are you saying dad?" was heard, muffled, through the door. Intrigued she was going to continue eavesdropping, but considered Mrs. Hardy in the other room. Not wanting to get caught looking bad, she knocked quietly and quickly.

A rough, "Yes," was heard followed by moving chairs and the door swinging open by Joe.

"Hello," Kailey responded in a small voice, "Is everything okay?"

Both boys turned to their father as she stepped in. Mr. Hardy answered the lingering question, "Yes, everything is fine, thank you for your concern Kailey." It seemed as though he was trying to slyly dismiss her.

She gave him an odd look before saying anything else, "Mr. Hardy, I know who it is and I'm going speak to my father about it. This lack of communication and trust from him hurts. I'm sorry he had to bring you into this family affair."

Mr. Hardy hardened up, putting on his fatherly persona. "Kailey, why don't you take a seat and calm down before calling your father. I do not believe he would appreciate your anger right now. He is working day and night with agents to track down her and her accomplices."

Kailey's burst of energy and attitude simmered down as she took the empty seat. "I'm sorry Mr. Hardy. That came out quite harshly. I just want to let you know I am really grateful for your family taking me in on such short notice. I feel like I should just try to talk to him before you do."

"That's very nice of you to suggest, but I would like you to be frank with us," Joe could barely hold back his laugh and smirk as his father continued, "Do you feel safer up here?"

"Yes," she paused, "I do, but..."

"But what? You don't think she could locate you, do you?"

"Well…" She began and looked off to the sides.

"Is there something we should know?"

"It's silly, just my gut telling me something is wrong. I know she could find me. Anywhere. So why wouldn't she just let herself be seen, have my dad relocate me, and track me from there?"

Mr. Hardy's brow creased in deep concentration, "That, m'dear, is a reasonable concern. Oh, and how did you find out about her?"

"Online."

"Really?" Frank asked, "How did you find something when we found nothing?"

"What do you mean?" Kailey shot back.

"Well, dad was told by your father. I remember this case, it would not be presented to the public because be kept under wraps. For some reason there is FBI involvement, which does not allow much to be in the Texas police county records, therefore making what little information there is only available to those officers working the case. So I'll ask again - how did you find it?"

The tension in the room grew with the heat. Kailey felt backed into a corner, unsure of how to answer without them looking down on her for how she had accessed the information. When there was a knock on the door, she let out a deep breath relieved from the intense interrogation.

Mrs. Hardy came in, cheery, but her look turned stern after she took in the faces in the room. Her tone harsh, she asked, "Fenton, what is going on?"

"Honey, we were just talking to Kailey about the case."

"About what case? The one you refused to discuss at dinner? What exactly has changed now?"

"She knows why she was sent here, or better yet because of whom."

"You don't think she already knew or at least had an inkling because of the way you were at dinner? Honestly Fenton, I don't see why she can't know. It does involve her after all. It would have been better to have heard it from her father, but I can understand that he is rather preoccupied at the moment."

Joe added, "Dad, it was pretty obvious, you were like Harry Potter when he was trying to tell Umbridge he had no contact with Sirius Black. No wonder we came to talk to you and she found out herself. We should lay off the third degree. What does it matter how she found it, doesn't it just matter that she did?"

"Yeah, I agree," Frank said, "Her knowledge can help figure out that woman's next move."

"Okay, thank goodness you all toned down, before I could cut the tension with a butter knife," Mrs. Hardy said and left the room.

Mr. Hardy gathered his thoughts and looked at the teens. "Okay well, you are advising me with this and only in this office. You are not tangling in this federal investigation. You weren't asked and probably won't be. So, I have your complete and utter understanding that you will listen to me?"

"Yes," each of the teens responded.

"Good," Mr. Hardy said and sat back in his chair satisfactorily. "Let's begin. Anything else unusual happen lately? Any indication she may have returned?"

"No."

"Has your family's routines changed at all from the time she was your father's girlfriend?"

"Well Matt and Mark moved out. I'm even busier, much like my brother Josh. Brian's still there, he's a senior. Of course the locks have been changed. We still take the same route to school that is not on many side streets. I left from the airport closest to our house."

"Wait dad, maybe we could ask someone to check out the footage from the airport, maybe someone was there keeping tabs on Kailey."

"Yes, but Kailey, how many brothers do you have?"

"Five. The oldest one is Tom and he's off at college in Colorado."

"Wow. I knew it was too good to be true."

"What do you mean by that Joe?"

"Uh, nevermind."

"Come on Joe, tell me," Frank nudged his embarrassed brother, smirking. Joe shoved him off the edge of the chair earning a stern throat clearing from their father. They shrugged it off and looked at Kailey.

She continued, "Joe, I would still like an answer?"

"Hey, why are you giving me the third degree now? Give it a break?" He smiled.

"So what is too good to be true?"

"Well, the fact that you are quite good looking, smart and single. I knew there had to be a catch. You have five brothers, no need to say any more."

Kailey and Frank just giggled at Joe's defeated look. Mr. Hardy decided to focus them sooner rather than later, "Okay, I just sent a message to the agents I'm working with on the case about checking up on that footage. No I didn't mention my sources, so relax. Now, if we can't think of anything else, why don't you get back to studying and washing up."

Glances between the teens registered that there were no further questions, so they got up and left, thanking the great detective. The night finished out with the three of them alternating studying and using the bathroom, then going to sleep.

…..

An alarm was blaring and would not stop. Kailey pulled herself out of bed and almost fell, forgetting this wasn't her room. There was quite a bit of space between the bed and floor. Trudging through the mess on the floor and into the next room, she came to a stop in front of the bed as an arm flailed around, finally hitting the switch off. The blond headed boy wasn't fazed; he just dug back under the warm covers. She glared at the clock. 6:30, read the red numbers. Too early and I'm not even going to school, she thought. About to step out of the room, she stopped as another door opened. Frank came in quietly and motioned for her to back away. Then he ripped the covers back and screamed, "wakey wakey, eggs and bakey!"

Joe let out a muffled yell and threw his pillow out blindly. Kailey couldn't hold back her laughter at the scene in front of her. An angry Joe getting up, blinded by the shades Frank had opened, was trying to collect his covers and pillow. He gave Frank an evil look when he noticed Kailey was there. He managed a gruff, "Get out!" to the retreating figures of Kailey and Frank.

She cleaned herself up, determined to make a good impression before going to breakfast. Joe was still not down there by the time Kailey was. Frank was sitting at the table chatting with his mother and motioned for Kailey to sit next to him. Then he said, "Sorry you had to see his room. That's probably about as clean as it gets." She just laughed in reply while taking a seat.

"Thank you Mrs. Hardy, this looks delicious."

"No problem sweetheart. Fenton, can you tell your son his food is getting cold so he better hurry it up?"

Mr. Hardy started to yell it, but was greeted with a less than enthusiastic, "I'm coming, I'm coming."

While everyone munched, Frank asked, "So Kailey, what are you doing about school?"

"Oh, well, I brought all my work with me. Yes. I had it all at home because I was preparing for finals over the break. We don't really do much for Thanksgiving holiday, so it's just an extra few days to the weekend to me."

"How about the exams though?"

"Well, I hope to be back in time, but if not, I can turn in the papers and exams online. I already spoke and emailed with my teachers."

"Oh, any more questions Mr. Inquisitive?"

"No," Frank shook his head embarrassed. "Boys! You need to go, and drive to school safety. It still looks like the winds are still howling," Mrs. Hardy encouraged.

"Yes mom," was the reply and both boys got up to leave.

They were on the road in only minutes and well on their way to school. It was interesting that not too many cars were about, so the boys paid special attention to the car increasing speed as it approached the van from behind. Frank moved the car as far to the right as would be allowable and safe. That car did not seem interested in passing them.

"Frank watch out!" Joe shouted as they came around a turn and there were some tree bits in the road. Frank eased up on the acceleration only enough to maneuver around branches. The dark colored car behind them kept coming towards them and eventually was right on their tail. Nearly at school, the boys hoped this person would stop harassing them. They did not get such good luck. The car gave their van a nudge, causing the van to slide on the icy roads. Frank maintained control, but when the car hit them one more time the Hardy Boys spun off to side of the road on to the snowy embankment as the dark car sped away.

Author's Note: I'm not exactly sure how jurisdiction works, just a brief idea. Correct me if I got something wrong and it just kind of goes with the story. There is a lot more going on behind the scenes. I hope you enjoyed it:) Please Read and Review, I really appreciate it!


	4. Relaxing

Thank you for reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry really busy first week back at school, homework overload on three-day weekend. This has actually been finished for a while, just haven't uploaded it yet. The next one should be up soon if i get a few more reviews please.

Disclaimer: I only own Kailey so far:)

Chapter 4

"Now, Mr. Hardy, no more delays. I believe I really should speak to my father."

Mr. Hardy looked at the strong young woman in the doorway of the study. She could have very well slept in as she did not physically need to attend school, but she was adamant that was fine. He agreed, "Okay why don't you speak with him first through my phone, then I will take over." He noticed she gave a strange look and explained, "If she is tracking you then she won't hear this call that may give out valuable information."

Kailey called her father who answered shortly after the first ring. "Hello dad."

"Hi sweetheart, sorry I didn't talk to you last night, but I was pretty busy."

"It's okay dad, I understand. You want to catch that woman. Yes you feel safer that I'm no longer in Texas, but why couldn't you just tell me?" she pleaded.

"I can only apologize so much, but you have to understand I didn't want any arguments from you to why you should remain here. The other night I had just learned that she escaped and no one had a clue to her whereabouts. It was too close for comfort for me honey, and I don't want you to get hurt."

"Thank you for your upmost concern dad. So any leads?"

"Now what makes you think I would share that with you if I did know anything?"

"Dad the worst I could do I is help you find her, while staying safely quite a few states away. And of course you know something, but you probably just want to share with Mr. Hardy."

"You've got that right. Just study and hang out with his boys, stay out of trouble. Please. OH, and how did you find out about her presence in Texas?"

"Online dad. You just need to know where to look. In no time I found a little information."

"Okay, well, you'll know when we find her. Stay safe and I love you. Now, please pass the phone over and leave the room."

"Yes, sir. Love ya too," she passed the phone to Mr. Hardy who directed her out of the room and to firmly shut the door.

It was only Tuesday, she didn't have that much to finish working on because she had quite a bit of spare time yesterday. Frustrated that she was stuck in the house and trying to work out an eventful plan for the day, Kailey ran into Mrs. Hardy in the kitchen. They apologized for their actions and sat at the table with their drinks.

Mrs. Hardy saw a jumble of emotions on the young girl's face, so she pried, "What did your father have to say?"

"Nothing. Literally, he told me nothing at all more than I already knew. He doesn't want me to get involved, which I think is slightly odd since I am basically already involved. Okay, I know he just wants me to be safe, but I can only keep myself safe if I know as much as possible about the enemy."

"Sweetheart, I understand and so do the boys. It seems that your father just doesn't want to acknowledge that point of view for some reason. You've got us here. I'm sure Mr. Hardy has no problem letting you know important information. You probably already have a good idea of what could happen and how to prevent that due to your previous experience. If you need anyone to talk to, I want you to know I am always here."

Kailey looked up from her drink, "Thank you so much Mrs. Hardy. You have no idea how much that means to me."

Desiring to brighten the mood, Mrs. Hardy changed the subject, "So what are your plans today?"

"Actually, I have nothing planned. Can't really go anywhere and wouldn't know where to go, so I'm just stuck twiddling my thumbs here."

"Alright then, when you're exhausted from twiddling your thumbs, why don't you come to the store with me? I could certainly use the company."

"That sounds great Mrs. H! Let me get cleaned up and finish twiddling my thumbs," Kailey replied, filled with a new sense of energy and gave her a hug before bounding up the stairs.

The girls left for the day to shop and go to the grocery store. Mrs. Hardy gave her a tour of the town. They even stopped for lunch at a local favorite. When they arrived back at the Hardy household, each was surprise that the boy's van was already in the drive with a new dent on it.

Quickening her step, Mrs. Hardy was furious. The car was just fixed. "Joseph Hardy, come here this instant," she managed as she stepped through the door, making her way into the kitchen with Kailey not far behind.

"Yes mom," Joe said as he came into the kitchen followed by Frank.

"What happened to the car this time?" Mrs. Hardy asked in a tone saying don't joke around.

"Well, you see, on the way to school, some guy came up on us and knocked us off the road. There wasn't any serious damage we determined, and we had no license plate number. With a broad description of the car, we figured it would be useless telling the police right now. So we just went to school and told dad as soon as we came home," Joe looked to his brother.

Frank continued, "Dad understood our reasoning, and agreed they wouldn't take us seriously, especially since it is winter time and the roads are slippery. The police will probably come up with the conclusion that we were being reckless or something to that effect. Please don't be too mad at us mom. We didn't do anything to antagonize this person. I moved over to the side thinking he was going to pass me, but that wasn't what he wanted to do. At least we're okay." Joe smiled at his brother's concluding statement, it was a tear-jerking fact that he might have joked about. It sounded much more sincere the way he said it. Their mother caved, breaking her stern facial expression.

"Okay, well, I'm glad to see you are both in one piece, now help Kailey grab the rest of the bags from the car," she directed the teens out of the kitchen and started putting things away.

Once bundled up the boys met Kailey at the car. As they approached she asked, "So what makes you think it was a guy?

"What do you mean?"

"You kept saying "he" in your little tale. And I'm asking how do you know it's a "he"?"

"Well…" Joe trailed off as Frank shook his head.

"What Joe means to say Kailey is that we think it was a guy, but it could have quite possibly been a woman. We did not see the driver that well."

"Oh," she responded lingering by the car, "Then who do you think it could have been? You aren't on any cases and your father is finishing up his. That wasn't a goon of my dad's crazy ex-girlfriend, she is much more methodical. That was more of an afterthought action. It's not like they gave you a hint to their identity or a warning to anyone."

"So," Frank continued, "It's almost as if there was really no point in it. Great. Now back to square one."

"Okay, why don't we carry this enthralling conversation inside the nice, warm house," Joe interrupted, nudging them to move from in front of him on the walkway.

"Wow, you guys got a lot of stuff! Where all did you go today?"

"Stores around Bayport and the grocery store," Kailey replied, taking off the many layers of clothing and separating food from the other bags. The boys volunteered to bring the stuff upstairs, while she helped in the kitchen.

"Thank you darling," Mrs. Hardy said as the women finished putting away the last of the groceries.

"It wasn't a problem at all Mrs. H. Thank you for showing me around Bayport! I had a wonderful day!" Kailey replied. She went upstairs to dig through the other bags. There were a few scarfs and new shoes, but mostly unique jewelry from Mrs. Hardy's favorite shop. After a few minutes of sorting she said, "I know you're in here, why don't you just invite yourself in and say something?"

She turned around to face a bewildered Joe. "Oh, sorry. I didn't think I made any noise. I didn't want to disturb you. You looked quite content."

"I just had that feeling that someone was watching me, so I just wanted to know why," she smiled.

"Oh, well, tonight we are meeting up with some of our friends at the local pizza place. Want to come? I know we might not seem as much fun as our parents, but I am determined to prove you wrong."

"Is that so? Well, then I must take you up on that challenge. That'd so much fun to meet your friends!"

"Sweet! We're leaving in about two hours, Frank needs to do homework. So see you in a bit, I'll be in my room if you need me," Joe said before walking out.

For the next two hours Kailey alternated doing some studying with picking out an outfit. Joe did his homework and tried to think of ways to prove he was an interesting and fun person. Eventually the clock hit the two hour mark and he went in his brother's room to tell him it was time to go meet their friends. Then he ventured into the guest room, knocking on the semi-opened door. Joe was answered with a "come in".

"Wow, you look nice."

"Thanks Joe! You look nice too!" Kailey replied getting off the bed to snatch her shoes. "So are we leaving?"

"Yep. I just wanted to see if you were ready. I heard that girls tend to take a while to get ready, so I wanted to check on you to make sure we wouldn't be late. I know Frank consistently blames me for taking a long time and I figured I would warn you."

"Thanks," she smiled, "Do you have any idea how unbelievably cheesy that sounded?"

That statement was rewarded by a muffled laugh from the hallway. Frank walked in and told them, "Yes that was pretty cheesy, little bro."

Joe's cheeks turned a deep crimson as he muttered something along the lines of "you are both out to get me" and left the room.

"I think you hurt his feelings," Kailey joked as she grabbed her purse and turned off the light.

"Naw, he's tough. He'll be fine in time," Frank then whispered as they descended the stairs, "just give him some food and you'll be his new best friend."

"Okay, thanks for the heads up," she laughed. They came into the living room with Joe and his mother watching the news.

Joe looked up, "about time you two. I was about to leave. I didn't want to be late, that's not me at all."

"Sorry, I'll just thrown on my coat and we'll go," Kailey said as she made her way to the coat closet followed close by the boys. All dressed up for the cold weather, they bid Mrs. Hardy adieu and left for the pizza parlor.

It was a short ride filled with bad singing and jokes. Finally the three teens arrived at the quaint ma and pa's restaurant. Rushing inside from the cold, they were greeted by a "Over here!" from a large group of students at the back of the room. Reaching the table they said hello and Joe said, "This is Kailey. And Kailey this is everybody." Frank just rolled his eyes as he took a seat next to his girlfriend.

"Kailey this is my girlfriend Callie. That's Chet, Lauren- Chet's gf, Biff, and Phil. We'll just pull up another chair and we can start eating!" Everyone laughed.

"So where are you from?" Callie asked.

"Texas."

"Really? You don't look like much of a cow-girl," Biff said.

Kailey gave him quite a stare down and shot back, "Sorry to disappoint. I'm just a regular teenager, much unlike you."

"Ooo" was the response from most of the table.

Lauren ignored him and continued, "So what brings you up here to hang out with the Hardys? I'm sure it's definitely not the weather."

Noticing all eyes were on her and feeling quite uncomfortable about releasing certain information to these teens she just met, Kailey paused before answering, "Yeah, you go that right. I don't even have warm clothes for this freezing weather. I think I'll only be staying here a week or two because my dad just wanted me to meet the Hardys."

"Oh," the conversation ceased as the waitress took their orders.

"Have you ever seen snow before?" Phil asked.

"Yeah, a long time ago my family took a trip to the mountains for a week. We stayed in my dad's friend's cabin. It was awesome. We tried every sport to do with winter you could ever think of."

"Do you like the cold?"

"It's okay in short periods of time. As I didn't even know where I was going exactly when I left (it was a surprise" she whispered to the other teens), I don't have that many warm jackets and clothes," Kailey told them.

"That settles it," Callie declared, "We are going shopping!" Kailey smiled as the girls high-fived.

"Define we," Joe said.

"The gals. Joseph, you can go do boy things, don't worry your pretty little blond head off."

"Don't worry he won't, he's too busy being relieved," Chet added.

"Oh, sure laugh at Joe. Go ahead, all of you. I know you were thinking the same thing though. Don't even try to deny it!"

The rest of the meal was filled with playful banter, it only toned down when the food came and they all dug in. Eventually it was dark outside and the weather wasn't improving, so the teens started trickling out of the pizza parlor. Ready to leave the Hardys, Kailey and Biff paid their bills, but were stopped by a young man running into them. Sorry was exchanged, but it turned into laughter. The first thing Kailey could understand was Biff saying, "Tony, you speedy little man."

Noticing that the entire restaurant was looking at them, the boys cackling died down. "Oh, Kailey this is our friend Tony, and Tony this is Kailey. He works here."

"Nice to meet you."

"Same goes to you beautiful." The boys snickered.

"So, where were you buddy?" Joe asked.

"I was dropping off pizzas around town. My shift just ended, so I was running in here to sign out. Sorry about bowling you over!"

"Naw man it's fine," Biff started, but was distracted by his phone going off. He looked at the others, "It's my mom again. I have to go. See you guys tomorrow! It was great meeting you Kailey!" He walked out the door after goodbyes.

Tony also turned to them, "Well, I have to hit the road too, I still have homework to finish."

"Alright."

"See ya," Frank said.

"Nice to meet you," Kailey added as the trio went to the parking lot.

The wind was howling, sending shivers down their spines. It was eerie walking toward the van that was under a flickering light. Huddling together they got to the car and Frank began unlocking the door by hand as the button wasn't working. They didn't notice until it was extremely close by, but a dark car came flying into the parking lot. It drove up, stopping next to the van, obstructing the teens' view of the restaurant.

Everything happened so fast from that point forward. At the same time as the doors were unlocked and the kids went to open them, a man jumped out of the car and yelled, "Don't move a muscle or you will all be dead." Within a few seconds some other men jumped out and grabbed the teens, pushing them into the car. Then the car door was slammed shut and the vehicle tore out of the lot with three extremely terrified hostages being roughly tied up.


	5. Discovered

**Disclaimer: Don't own Hardy Boy franchise :(**

Chapter 5

Mr. Hardy kept flipping through the pages upon pages of notes. He had been in the study since he had shoved down a quick dinner. There was still something he was missing, he could feel it. It was nagging him to no end. He was only pulled from his intense concentration as his phone rang. Knowing that it had to be important, he quickly altered his attention to a frantic young voice at the other end. "Tony, it's Mr. Hardy. What's the matter? The boys aren't home right now. (There's panting on the other end of the phone) Son, is everything okay?"

"No, Mr. Hardy everything isn't okay. They are gone."

"Yes, I know, they went to the pizza parlor and will probably be arriving home soon."

"No Mr. Hardy they won't. You see their car is here still. They walked outside nearly ten minutes ago," Mr. Hardy urged him to take a breathing as he could tell the boy was panting, obviously frightened. "Mr. Hardy the car was unlocked. They were nowhere near it and the keys were just lying on the ground."

This caught his attention and he directed the boy, "Tony call the police. I will be right down there. Don't touch anything."

"Yes Mr. Hardy. I understand. Thank you." He hung up.

Mr. Hardy jumped up and ran to the living room, "Laura, I have to go check something out real quick. Ill be right back."

"Okay honey, just call and let me know. Those three should be back pretty soon and if they are not, I'll wait until you come back to do to scolding for staying out late on a school night."

"Of course sweetie," he quickly said and kissed her cheek. Then he ran outside with his coat and scarf half on eager to track down the teens. Only yielding to the red lights, Mr. Hardy made it to the pizza parlor in no time. There was a cop car next to the boy's van with a young boy fervently motioning the intrigued father over.

Worried he jogged over to them, "What happened?"

"Sir that is what we are going to find out. Are you their father?"

"Yes," he gave the officer an exasperated look (obviously he was new, he thought) and continued by introducing himself to Randy "I'm Fenton Hardy and would like to hear what both of you know."

The officer appeared slightly embarrassed as he explained he basically knew nothing, so Mr. Hardy directed his attention to his sons' young friend. Tony told him that the three of the teens left after everyone else and since it was late on a school night the lot was pretty empty. They already asked the few people in pizza shop, but they noticed nothing out of the ordinary. Undeterred, Mr. Hardy made his own way around the van, inspecting the ground around the ajar door.

"Tony, did you open the door?"

"Yes sir, that's why I thought something peculiar, might have occurred because it wasn't locked."

"Thanks," Mr. Hardy replied and took one more swift glance around as he picked up the car keys and turned to the two men, "How about we head inside, it's quite chilly and there doesn't seem to be anything to find."

Everything was cleaned up and mostly everyone was cleared out of the restaurant. A young lady and boy were sitting at the counter. The three men approached them once inside. Tony's father, who was the owner of the fine eating establishment, beckoned them over to the couple.

"Sally and Tim, this is Mr. Hardy, Tony, and Officer Randy, please tell them what you told me." They nodded their head and turned around.

Sally began, "Hello, I'm Sally Karr and this is my boyfriend Tim Lawhead. We were sitting by the window earlier having a pizza, but when you were in here before I was in bathroom. So I didn't get to tell you that I did see something odd. There was a dark car peeling through the parking lot. It was extremely hard to make out with the lack of light and snow starting to come down. Anyways I saw it just fly in and go over the curb, which caught my attention, but then it went past my eyesight. A little while later it did speed out of here, but Tim didn't notice, so I didn't think anything of it. When I came back out here, Tim told me about you asking the customers, so I decided to wait for you to come back."

"Thank you so much Sally," Randy said, "Tim do you have anything to add?"

"No sir."

"Okay, well then you two are free to leave. Thank you."

"No problem," Sally said, "I hope you find them, they seemed really nice." The two of them left the two Pritos, Mr. Hardy and the police officer to ponder on their next move.

Mr. Hardy broke the silence, "Do you guys have cameras outside this place?"

"Yes!" Mr. Prito exclaimed, "Follow me!" The four men rushed to the office. Shortly the film was being rewound. It had a perfect view of the boy's van pulling in and the three of them going inside. Mr. Prito fast-forwarded it till right after they checked out (he checked the computers earlier). The film showed the three of them slowly making their way to the car and just after unlocking the door the dark car pulled up and the scene unfolded. After it drove away, the screen stopped.

Randy spoke first, "I'm taking this down town for evidence. Thank you sir. I'm going to ask for another car to come around to see if any finger prints can be gathered. My partner Thomason should still be in the car, I wanted him to secure the scene."

"Sounds good. These two can probably lock up and go home, right?" Mr. Hardy directed at the officer.

"Yes they can and I will contact you if we do need anything else because it looks as though the parking lot was the only crime scene." Mr. Hardy continued walking out with Randy.

"Okay, here's the deal, your partner can be lookout until a team arrives. You and I can take my car to the station to use their video software. We need to find my sons and their friend." Mr. Hardy gave the younger officer a glare as he was about to protest. Randy had heard about this man and his sons. They were the talk of the town when he moved there a few months ago. Today was the first encounter with the knowledgeable gentleman because he had happened to be close by on rounds, so took the frantic call. Understanding he was not someone to cross Randy nodded his head and silently followed the anxious detective outside.

Fenton warmed up his car as Randy gave the down low to his partner. Barely closing the door Mr. Hardy raced off towards the police station.

"Are you okay?" Frank roughly whispered. They had been driving a while and thrust about quite a bit.

"Yeah I'm alright for being shoved in a van, hands tied behind my back, and bouncing back and forth between you two for I don't' even know how long," Joe responded.

"I'm okay Frank. Thanks." Kailey said.

"Shhh…" was ordered from one of the men in front of them. It was an SUV and they were squished in the farthest back seats of the vehicle behind three very large men. The leader was driving with his second in command in the passenger's seat.

"Yeah, be quiet ya hear," said another man with a scruffy voice, "Or we'll make you be quiet." He smiled an extremely creepy smile after the threat and turned back around.

The three teens just looked at each other in horror and confusion. What have they gotten themselves into this time?

Approximately thirty minutes later the car veered off on a gravel road then stopped. All the men got out then pulled out the teens roughly. Forced to walk in front with a gun at each of their backs, they followed the leader to a dark building. As they got closer the shape could be barely made out. It was tall and wide. Not until the giant doors slid open did it become obvious they were in a remade barn. The floor was hay, but it was well lit with fake walls put in place and a large amount of unfinished insulation done.

"Welcome to my humble abode," the sneering leader announced and smiled, motioning them to continue following. Passing some more makeshift walls the three of them eventually were lead into a small blocked off area that was labeled inventory. They were quickly pushed in on top of each other as the door was quickly slammed shut and locked.

"Well, this is just great," Joe managed to say as he rolled off of his brother. They were all trying to get into a sitting position to look around.

"How are your ropes?" Frank asked as he strained to slip his hands out.

"Barely can budge, you?"

"Same," Frank replied then looked at Kailey who was very quiet. "Hey are you alright?"

Kailey looked up to two looks of concern, "Yes I'm okay as I can be for being kidnapped. I think I may have some leniency in my bonds. I have pretty small hands." She smiled.

"Oh wait, I think I have my knife, do you Frank?" said Joe filling the teens with a new sense of enthusiasm.

"I'm not sure, where's yours?"

"My back pocket, ugh, I can't quite reach. Can you?" Joe scooted over to his brother who tried to lean back and grope for the swiss army knife in his obscenely large pocket.

"Almost….. Got …it," Frank said.

"Wait!" Kailey whispered harshly, "I think I hear someone coming." She was closest to the door, so slowly backed away by the boys, not too eager to be the first to face their captor. Frank and Joe froze as they heard the steps and the sound of unlocking the door.

It creaked open to revealing the sneering slim man. "Hello, I hope your new accommodations are to your liking." He took in the three teens that looked none worse for the wear.

Joe scoffed, which wasn't as quiet as he had hoped. The man's cheerful demeanor altered instantly into a death glare. He snapped his fingers and two of his henchmen entered the room behind him. "Joseph, isn't that pleased, what do you think we can do to change that?"

Scruffy voice replied to his boss, "I'm not too sure sir, what did you have in mind?"

"Well, I believe we have some blindfolds for them so they don't have to look at their place since it's so unappealing. Want to go grab them Tyler." The other goon exited, leaving grouchy and scruffy to glare at the teens with extreme interest.

To break the building tension from the intense silence, Joe spoke up, "Who exactly are you and what do you want with us?"

The leader grinned, "Oh, you don't know who I am? Well then I guess you're not as close to your father as we thought. Surely he would have disclosed his most recent case with you?"

The boys both shook their heads, so the raving man continued, "That's a shame. Well I am Warren Hildern. And that is all you really need to know for now. Ah thank you Tyler," he said to the returning henchman. The three men approached the teens and covered their eyes with ripped up bed sheets. "Now don't do anything you will regret. Just make yourselves comfortable and you shall be returned to your father within the next few days." Ending on that note the criminals left, locking the door.

"Nice going little bro."

"Aww, come on Frank, what exactly did you expect was going to happen?"

"Well, I thought he may have given us a bit more to go on, but your uncontrolled laugh didn't make him as willing to share. Now don't move too much, I'm still gonna grab that knife," Frank directed his brother.

"Kailey I'm really sorry about this," Joe pleaded.

"It's okay. They weren't that harsh with us. We'll get out of here in no time. I trust you."

Joe asked, "What do ya mean?"

"Well, your father is a well-respected PI, so I can only assume he passed on some of his traits onto his sons who have been following in his footsteps. Therefore I have faith that this isn't exactly the worst situation you have been in, so we'll get out unscathed."

"Thanks," both boys replied, earning a giggle from Kailey.

"So you're enjoying Bayport?" Joe asked to break the silence that was starting to grow unbearing.

"Joe, really?" Frank said.

"Yeah, it's a really nice town. That was some pretty good pizza."

"Pretty good? Pretty good? I can't believe you would day that about that pizza. It's the best ever!"

"I don't know about that," Kailey retorted.

"Come on Frank back me up," Joe asked his brother who was slowly working on his bonds.

"I don't know. We haven't tried tons of pizza places in the world, so we can't be totally say that it's the best."

Joe just groaned at his logical brother and Kailey laughed at their banter. "Score!" Frank said as his brother's hands were free. In a few minutes they were all free and rubbing their sore wrists.

"Now what?" Joe asked.

"Well we need to get out of here for starters. Do you know anything about dad's case?"

"No, not much. You?"

"Not really," Frank responded.

"I thought he shared everything with you guys," Kailey stated as they began inspecting the place where they were held.

"Actually, he has been out of town quite a bit lately for this case. He hasn't shared much with us as he knows that we've been busy," Frank said as he thought about it carefully.

"Yeah, true. He must have mentioned something, was it a fraud, robbery, murder or conspiracy?" Joe wondered.

"Okay, so guys, if we do manage to move these walls and get outside how do you propose we leave? I just want to jog your memory that it's like a tundra outside with the snow and wind. It's not like they're going to give us a ride back to Bayport," Kailey pointed out to the boys who were avidly testing out the strength of the walls.

"Oh yeah, well, we'll figure it out once we are sprung from this cell," Joe responded

"Swell," she replied following their gaze. There was a loose wall attachment towards the back of the room. In a few minutes it was eased out of place and they stuck their heads out to check for more goons patrolling the corridors. With no one in sight the three teens made a break for it. Silently tip-toeing across the hallways they froze as they heard voices.

Scruffy, "Yeah, well, this should be over with soon. My contact at the department let me know that Hardy was already heading there with some kind of evidence."

"Okay man, but isn't that a little ahead of schedule?" another new voice asked.

"No, there's no way he really knows much. We told the kids it's about his most recent case and they fell for it. So we should be in the clear."

"Good. Let's go eat. We've been busy loading boxes all night."

"Sounds good," was the reply and the footsteps slowly were gone.

"That was close," Joe breathed and got a silent motion from his brother who began sneaking around the corner.

Shortly they came upon a door. Each looked at one another with a smile for their success. Taking a step closer they stopped dead. They door was burst open and they were standing out in the open.

**Author's Note: Please read and review. It really motivates me to write and it's pretty enjoyable! Thank you:)**


	6. Comfort

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hardy Boys!**

Chapter 6

They could hear the voice of the leader, but his back was to them, so the teens slinked back into the shadows. He quickly shut the door and turned right. Breathing sighs of relief that the criminals didn't come their way, the three teens made it slowly for the door. With the coast clear, one by one they exited the barn into the freezing cold.

"Now what?" Kailey asked.

"I believe there was a house not too far away from here. So we should go up the drive and turn left."

Joe looked at his brother, "Why not just take a car?"

"Genius, I would suggest that but we don't have the keys nor the time to hotwire the car," Frank retorted and added, "not like we know how though."

"Ye of little faith," Joe said causing the other two to stare at him. He held up a set of keys. They began running to the car. Its lights came on when Joe pressed the button. At the car Frank demanded the keys, stating he was a safer driver. Knowing that the bad guys could spot them any minute, Joe begrudgingly took shotgun. Frank slowly backed the car out of the drive and on to the main road. Driving slowly in the messy weather, it took them ten minutes to reach the closest house. Joe definitely packed in the comments about the distance and their delicate state until the door was answered by an old woman.

"What can I do for you m'dears?" she asked to the three disheveled teens.

"Can we use your phone m'am, please. It's an emergency," Frank pleaded.

"Why certainly. Now come inside before you catch a cold." They followed her inside and she directed Frank to the phone and invited Kailey and Joe into the kitchen. Those two ate, drank, and explained their situation, while Frank called the police and then his father.

"Son, thank god you are okay."

"Thanks, Kailey and Joe are also fine. We are at a house down the street from the barn waiting for the police."

"Good to hear, I'll be coming along shortly. I'm going to hang up because of the weather, so I'm not talking and driving. Don't forget to tell me everything when I get there!"

"No problem dad. I will. Bye." At that Frank joined the gabbing in the kitchen, helping himself to some hot cocoa.

"So Mrs. Figg, what did you used to do? Before you retired to this lovely house?" Joe inquired.

"Well, sonny I used to…" whatever she was going to recount was cut off by a few harsh knocks at the door. "Now just a minute," Mrs. Figg yelled as she left the kitchen in a rush, afraid her front door was going to be knocked down. The teens kept hidden, but lingered close to hear what the stranger wanted.

"Hello m'am, m'name is Charlie Barker and I was just wondering if I could take a minute of your time? I understand it's a late hour, but I think I may need your assistance."

"Yes, well then continue. I opened the door and everything, so I would at least like to know what it was for at this hour of the night."

"Um yeah, well I'm looking for three teenagers, one girl and two boys. Have you seen them?"

"Why are you looking for them? No offense lad, but you don't look like a police officer."

He sighed, quite aggravated by this nosy old woman. "As a matter of fact m'am. Those three kids are my niece and nephews and they haven't returned home yet, so I've been just checking around the neighborhood because they don't seem to be answering their phones."

"Oh, well I'm sorry sir, but I haven't seen your nephews and neice. If I do, who should I call?"

Looking a cross between dejected and frustrated the man replied, "I'll give my number, do you have a pen and paper?"

Mrs. Figg nodded and handed him the materials from the front stand. He scribbled down some info and bid her good night. Then she turned off the porch light and retreated to the kitchen facing three nervous faces.

"Mrs. Figg who was it?"

"Sweetheart, you don't fool me. I'm sure you were listening," at that they all became interested in the floor and concentrating on their shoes.

"Yeah, but I don't understand why you did that."

"Oh, well, that man seemed a bit off and kept glancing at the black car in the driveway."

"No! We totally forgot! That probably gave us away!" Frank said irritated at his rookie mistake.

"He didn't ask about it though, Frank, so that's a good sign, right?" Joe tried to calm down his brother

"Maybe, but still doesn't mean we're off the hook."

Kailey spoke up, "At least the cops are on their way. We shouldn't worry too much longer."

"Yeah, I guess we're safe for now."

"You kids most certainly are. Now just go sit down and I'll warm up some food and more cocoa. Don't forget to make yourselves comfortable!" She shooed them out of the kitchen into the living room as they muttered thanks. That's how the three of them ended up watching the news and slightly nodding off a few minutes later.

"Hey! Can one of you charming young gentlemen grab some blankets from the upstairs closet? I don't need you getting sick and want you to be comfortable," Mrs. Figg asked while she was busying in the kitchen. Joe volunteered and left the half asleep Kailey and Frank on the couch.

Joe made his way to the second floor. It was an older house with carpeted stairs and old wooden frame. The closet was easy to locate, but the light not so much. Finally he just resulted to the small table on the table in the hallway. He grabbed a few blankets from the top shelf, closed the door, and turned off the light. Turning around for the top of the stairs he froze. He knew he heard the click of a gun, but thought he was being paranoid for a second. The old lady didn't seem to have a top notch security system, so someone could possibly breakin with ease. Joe's worry was confirmed as a gun was shoved in his back a few seconds later.

"Don't say a word and walk down the stairs," said a male voice pushing him down the steps. "We can't forget the other two."

Slowly they made it to the foyer and stopped by the front door. The man whispered in Joe's ear, "I have my gun trained on the girl. Now get them to follow you and do not alert the old woman or my hand may just slip."

Joe nodded. He was terrified. Why does this always happen? That girl's probably never going to be allowed back to stay with us. Detective work it's quite the love hate relationship. Approaching his dozing brother, Joe shook him lightly. Instantly he was up and alert, awakening Kailey. Joe motioned for them to quietly get up and follow him. Stopping Frank before he spoke, "It's life or death. Come on, now". That's when those two took notice of the gun behind Joe and the large man at the end of it. With that realization they left the couch and met the man at the front door.

The criminal wasn't looking to go down, so he motioned for them to walk in front of him as they went out the front door. The man grinned. Everything was finally working out.

**Author's Note: Please Review. It's the motivation to upload a new chapter. Oh and sorry this is a bit shorter than the others, hope you enjoy:)**


	7. Unprepared

Enjoy the new chapter! I will be regularly updating every 2-3 days.

**Disclaimer:** I only own, Agatha, Carl, Burton, Yaxley, Will, and Marco.

Chapter 7

After receiving the address of one Mrs. Figg's place of residence, police cars sped off followed shortly by Fenton Hardy. His long-time partner Sam Radley happened to be at the station and had no problem helping him find his sons and their friend. Currently he was in the passenger's seat with a flashlight and a map, scouring the vicinity from where Frank had telephoned earlier. Hoping the police were doing the same and at least one car was heading towards the barn that Frank had described, he consulted his laptop. He had recent realty information pulled up. Learning who owned the land the barn was on was vital. They needed a starting point. Frank's sketch of the men was general and nothing came up directly on the police station's computers. Until the men were recognized, he and Fenton had to start from scratch.

"Anything?" Fenton broke the silence ardently waiting for some information on the criminals who kidnapped the three teens.

"Uh," Sam redirected his thought to his companion. Fenton was tapping the wheel in impatience and kept scouring the area, looking for something that wasn't out there in the bad weather. Knowing that it was unwise to aggravate the man he continued, "Nothing new in the last five minutes."

He smiled, but it wasn't received by the worried driver. "Sam, I think I am most uncomfortable because I have no possible idea who the culprits could be. They aren't on any cases. We just zipped up the loose ends on the Beckendorff case. I haven't got any notifications of thugs recently escaping or let out. I have no clue."

"And you're sure it has nothing to do with the girl?"

"Yes I am certain. Frank said he knew who they were, but just grabbed her because she was with them."

"Oh," Sam responded crestfallen at the hopeful lead. "At least they got out, I'm sure that old lady will take care of them."

"Yeah, you're right. Now let's go over what we've got."

"Okay. It was a professional, sleek and clean grab and go kidnapping. No noticeable witnesses, only the girl who saw the racing car in the parking lot."

Fenton added, "Frank said they were tied up and drove for quite some time and were guided into a barn. This barn was extremely irregular because it was setup like an office with all the connecting cubicle walls forming rooms and hallways."

"Man that has to be one heck of a large barn."

"Yes, well maybe they took out the stalls so it's just a big empty space. Oh and he said there was a half- finished insulation job done on the outer walls."

"So that means this place wasn't a last minute. It's most likely a headquarters for some organization. Quite possibly bringing them there was a last minute thing."

"What do you mean?"

"You said earlier they were tossed in a room labeled inventory, correct?"

"Yes, and? Gosh what am I missing?" Fenton hit the steering wheel in frustration.

"Maybe they just put them in that room at one of their organization's locations because it was the closest or something? Maybe because of the weather or something they couldn't go to where they needed."

"Or maybe it was just a stop on the route to the intended holding place?"

"Exactly!"

"Progress! Whew, okay so what does that mean?"

"Quite possibly if they noticed the kids made a break for it they could track them down easily and go after them. Frank said it was pretty desolate correct? These maps do show quite a bit of private and protected land. There were only so many options where they could go."

"True, so then their steps could be traced easily. If that lady's house was the only one for miles and they took one of their cars, the kid's location would stick out like a sore thumb."

"Oh, great. Do you think we should check up on them?"

"I don't know Fenton. That old lady would probably keep a good eye on them."

"Sam, you just said old lady. Do you really think she's a match for a team of professional kidnappers?"

"Good point. How much longer until we get there?"

"About ten minutes or so."

"So you're definitely heading to all speed limits then?" Sam smiled, he got a chuckle outta Fenton.

The eased conscience was broken shortly by the shrill of a phone. It was Mr. Hardy's and he asked Same to answer it ask he needed to focus on the road.

"Hello, this is Fenton Hardy's phone, may I ask who is calling?"

"My name is Agatha Figg," Sam turned the speaker on, and she went on, "I am calling you because they aren't here! I looked everywhere. Those three kids are gone!"

"Please start from the beginning Agatha. When was the last time you saw them?"

"Okay, well after your son, Frank finished talking on the phone he joined us in the kitchen. Then there was a man who came to the door, but left after only a few minutes. We exchanged some short words then I shooed them off into the living room to relax while I warmed up some food and cocoa. In the middle of washing dishes, I realized there weren't many blankets out there. I asked for one of the boys to grab some from the upstairs closet and Joe volunteered. That was the last time I actually heard one of their voices," she considered, pausing.

She continued a few moments later, "He did get the blankets; they were bunched up on the couch. I think that's what made me believe they were still there when I called out that the stuff was warmed up, even though no one answered. I returned to the kitchen to finish cleaning. I worked some crossword puzzles. I noticed a TV ad was blaring and thought it odd there was no movement from that room. Once I realized they were gone I looked around and found your number on the table by the phone and called you," Mrs. Figg told the two anxious men.

"Thank you so much. You should probably tell the police when they arrive, which should be soon."

Fenton added, "Now make sure everything is locked up and remain in your kitchen Agatha. We are less than five minutes or so away."

"I will. Thank you so much. I am so relieved now. Drive safely. See you shortly, I believe I hear the sirens." She hung up leaving a lingering silence in the car.

The sirens could be heard a little while later. Fenton pulled into the large driveway. As he made if for the house, Sam went to the officers who were gathering by the couple of cars.

"Hello," Mr. Hardy said as he entered the house and walked over to a little old woman knitting in the rocking chair. At his entrance her demeanor did a complete one-eighty. Mrs. Figg got up faster than expected and closer the space between her and Fenton with an embrace.

Pulling away she asked, "What can I do you for? Coffee? Tea? Pizza roll? Cake?"

Fenton smiled, "Coffee would be splendid." She retreated to the kitchen.

He interrogated the cops. It was the same story she had previously told him. A team was inspecting the area and they were waiting for him and any further information. They were planning on checking out the barn about ten minutes down the road. After relaying what he knew, Fenton took an empty chair in the kitchen. He stayed out of the way of the busy-body, rushing around pulling numerous treats from her pantry.

Finally he settled with a few pizza rolls and Mexican wedding cookies. Fenton then began to ask some more intimate questions about the state of the three teens, "Agatha, thank you so much, you have no idea how much this means to me. How did they look?"

"Truthfully," she turned and gave him a coffee while taking up the seat across from him, "They mostly looked cold and scared. Only their wrists looked a little raw. I didn't want to call too much attention to it and make them uncomfortable, so I left it at that."

"Okay that's good. My mind was racing with numerous horrible scenarios, each worse than the last."

"Now, just go do your job. I'm sure they will be fine. I've heard of your detective skills, which are something to be proud of."

Fenton just smiled as he finished chowing down and finishing it off with a swig of coffee. "Well, thank you for you hospitality. I need to find my sons and their friend."

"Go right ahead. I'll clean up here."

Mr. Hardy left the kitchen and ran into Sam. They didn't fall, but let out a chuckle. Motioning him outside the other followed. They jumped into the police officers' conversation.

"A dark car was spotted running a red light not too far away. There are men going to check out those pictures. We, including Fenton and Sam, are going to that barn. Yaxley you stay here with the old woman. Marco and Will finish writing up the report on the alleged kidnapping."

Seeing Fenton's look another man elaborated, "There wasn't any forced entry and Mrs. Figg noticed nothing out of the ordinary. We know those boys are reliable, but we must follow the rules right now."

"Yes, Burton will accompany me. Fenton you and Sam follow. There's a pair currently casing the place, so once we get confirmation from them we will enter the premises. I have your assurance you will follow us no matter what, you will not barge in?"

"Yes" was the reply from both investigators. The group broke apart. Fenton and Sam quickly got into the car and sped off after the officers in charge of the operation. The car ride was silent. Each was forming their own schemes. Knowing not who their adversaries were only increased their anxiety and desire for precise plans of action.

High beams off, they rolled next to the parked police car. Officer Burton and the main officer Carl got out, greeting the two investigators. The first team was across from the four of them in between the men was the lawn and gravel drive to the large barn at the end of the lot. Understanding they had the element of surprise each of them stuck close to the woods as they advanced on the building.

Finally the large structure was in sight. There was a faint glow of light from the inside. No cars could be seen from their position. Running in the open to the front porch of the dinky house, the four paused. Then they made a break for the barn's entrance. The other two officers would remain hidden to be backup if needed.

Carl advanced on the doors, gun in hand pointed straight ahead. Burton went to the side of the barn, away from the doors, preparing for an attack from the unknown. Fenton and Sam lingered behind as requested on look out. Slowly Officer Carl grabbed the handle to the barn door and yanked it. It slid to the right. Everyone tensed, but sighed from relief once realizing there wasn't any imminent danger. Acting according to protocol the officers cased the place and bid the investigators to come forward and make sense of the establishment.

A tornado must have gone through. Parts of caulking and insulation were scattered everywhere. Fenton could only imagine what it had looked like when the boys were there. Partitions were a mess, papers decorated most of the hay covered floor, and it just felt empty.

"Alright, let's go to the right, then we'll check out the rest of the place," Carl stated and the others nodded. Officer Burton went directly to the computer system; he was young and knew what to look for. Sam and Fenton divided and conquered the space. Taking some pictures with his phone after radioing the other officers, he tried to form an idea of what could have caused this place to look so messy.

"I think this was a clear out sir," Burton called to his partner, "Hard drives are missing and there's nothing much of immediate use on the computers."

"Okay, thanks. You two find anything yet?" Carl asked.

"Nothing definite, only am working on assumptions."

"What do you think occurred?" Carl picked at the well-established investigator's brain. They were now walking in the opposite direction, looking for more clues.

"This is only a theory, but let's say they noticed the kids broke out. Obviously they left with one of their cars because of this weather, so there would be a team sent out to retrieve them, hoping they had not gone far and weren't missing for too long. Once realizing they had contacted the police and I, these criminals knew they were treading treacherous waters, so they sent a man in to read the old woman protecting them."

"Since they didn't take her out, we can only assume they have some kind of heart," Sam deduced.

"Yes, and once they figured their hideout was compromised a plan of their abduction was put in action. Those who remained at the barn got the message to prepare to clear out and move. So while the kids were grabbed for a second time, men ransacked the barn and left with important documents and other significant items. After that I don't know."

"Wow, that's pretty good reasoning, sir." Burton complimented.

"Thank you," Fenton paused. The door he was about to open had a cracked sign with "inventory" label on it. Noticing his frozen stature, Sam came up behind him and asked, "What is it?"

"This was the room they were kept in."

"Oh," Office Carl said and pulled out some gloves with which he carefully opened the door. This room wasn't as messy as the rest of the place. The only out of place items were the ropes lying on the ground. He took pictures after Fenton left the room through the broken wall in the back.

Satisfied and eager to look at more of the building officer lead his crew past more run of the mill offices. Noting there wasn't anything significantly important that would lead them to the organization's current whereabouts, they decided to leave and check out the exterior of the building.

Once outside the four of them began to walk to the hidden officers. After a few feet away from the entrance there was a loud "boom". Each slowly turned around filled with surprise at the scene before their eyes. The building had erupted into flames and was beginning to implode.

**Author's Note: **Yeah, this chapter is quite a bit longer than the previous one. Don't worry we'll see the Hardy boys in the next chapter, just didn't want to go back and forth within in the same chapter. Please Review, I can see all those just quickly reading the story. Feedback helps:)


	8. Uncomfortable

**Disclaimer: I only own Kailey and the bad guys.**

Chapter 8

Uncomfortable. That is all she could think of. There she was stuck between two large men in the back of a small car. Kailey had been separated from the Hardys after they returned shortly to the barn to figure out the car situation. All she understood is that the leader, who called himself Warren Hildern, thought they were too much trouble to be together and needed to be handled separately. Hence the reason she was in the back of a Prius, while she believed the boys were in the back of one of the SUVs.

Willing for the ride to end soon, Kailey stared outside at the brewing storm. The wind was brutally beating the trees that were covered with thin layers of snow that refused to stick. Everything seemed to blur together, and she wasn't sure if it was the combination of lack of sleep and the speed at which the car was flying down the road or the fear of what was going to happen next.

Anxious and determined to not fall asleep, Kailey took to the task of memorizing her captors. Tweedle-dumb on her right was a large man that had horrible BO. He was always looking out the window, so she wouldn't be able to describe his face. Tweedle-dumber on her left was a smoke-smelling muscle man with a creepy grin that she refused to subject herself to. Both of them were about the same height, extremely scrunched in the back seat with their legs ben all awkward.

Feeling uneasy at the lack of conversation earlier, she asked where they were going now. The thin man in the passenger's seat faced her with a deep expression of anger and slapped her across the face. He told her to not speak, stunned Kailey readily nodded in agreement. From then on he had not moved at all. He remained unusually still, only glancing at the rearview mirror from time to time.

The driver had large glasses on that she was pretty sure he had kept from the 70s. He appeared to be the least threatening because he was acting in a nervous manner. With the constant tapping of his fingers or feet in a steady rhythm she sympathized with the man, who was uncomfortable with the rash change in plans.

All four of the men were dressed in dark slacks and polo. It wasn't very menacing, but it struck a chord because she expected the criminals to be dressed in black. Finally coming to the conclusion that they did not want to be too conspicuous, she allowed her thoughts to wander about her current situation.

Kailey knew she was going to get out of there with help from the boys. The only question was when she was going to go back to her vacation. Only two days in and she was kidnapped, twice. Glad that this might be a regular occurrence for the teenagers, Kailey decided that Mr. Hardy would find them in no time with their experience in the detective field.

Something was nagging at the back of her mind. Why were they taken to the unsecure barn? Logical reasoning was amiss. Trying to remember every detail from that place, she closed her eyes. Nothing had stood out.

All of a sudden she was pulled back into reality. The car had stopped and the men were getting out. Hoping to get a good look at the men and see the Hardy boys, she eagerly scooted out after Tweetle-dumb. He grabbed her arm and slammed the door.

Kailey was being half-dragged as she couldn't seem to keep up with the burly man. She barely had time to take in her surrounding with her focus on staying upright. Her attention was diverted with a slamming sound behind her.

A few SUVs had parked and men were pouring out. Her eyes only focused on the younger ones that were being forced at gun point to walk forward. They were to follow the trail that Tweedle-dumb had dragged her to. She looked in front of her at a large house, he had stopped. Obviously he was a nameless, expendable goon, and therefore did not have a key to the boss' fortress, so they took refuge from the howling winds on the porch.

They did not wait long for the sneering Warren to strut up the walk playing with his key chain. Kailey was captivated by the grandeur of the mansion. The men and the teens were all gathered in the large foyer. There was a beautifully crafted spiral staircase to the second level, a room with a grand piano on the right, and long dining table on the left.

In an orderly fashion the criminals ducked around the staircase and through a door before the kitchen. It was not a closet or cupboard, but an entrance to a high-tech lair. Being in darkness for an extended period of time made their eyes sore as fluorescent lights flipped on, highlighting the vastness of the underground lab.

The men began dispersing and separating in to pre-determined groups. The teens were momentarily forgotten as Warren directed his crew and giving them the DL on this place. Some retreated to corners and pulled out laptops and papers, while others went back upstairs. Finally the head criminal approached the teens and their captors who were waiting anxiously off to the side.

"Welcome again to my wonderful operation," Warren said smiling and opening his arms wide. "Now, I have a special place for you three, where I know you will not get out. So you follow me."

Unnoticed before, the group travelled behind the ruthless leader to another corridor that seemed less homely than the lab that preceded it. It had a musty smell and water slowly dripping could be heard.

The completely contrasting atmosphere sent alarm bells off in Frank and Joe's minds, while it sent shivers down Kaylie's back. With little time to dwell on the diverse compartments of the basement the teens were pushed forward until Warren halted in front of a large metal door.

"This is your new home. It's not quite as warm or comforting as you last, but it'll do," Warren motioned for the teens to be put in the room. Quickly Kailey, then the boys were shoved in and the door was slammed shut.

"Are you alright?" Frank asked, his voice filled with concern as he once-overed the younger occupants of the cell.

"Yeah," Joe responded, standing up and shaking off dirt and snow.

"I'm alright. Thanks Frank," Kailey replied, slowly getting up.

"Well, this is definitely different."

"You got that right," said his younger brother. The teens examined the room. It was small without any windows and the only entrance was the metal door.

Kailey hit the door furiously with all the force she could muster, but it barely acknowledged her presence. "I guess getting out is outta the question."

"Yeah, it sure looks like it," Frank agreed.

"Oh, come on, we're the Hardy boys," Joe began and quickly added, "And you're a great friend. We can do anything!"

His smile was contagious, but Frank turned serious, "Exactly what do you expect, Houdini? Door is padlocked from the outside it sounded like and there aren't any other openings to escape from."

"Fine then, Mr. Reality-dashing-hopes man, why couldn't we try the ground or the ceiling?"

"Are you serious Joe?" Kailey asked extremely skeptical on the chances of getting away.

"Really, Joe, how can we dig through this packed dirt? There aren't tools to help us. I'm pretty sure we'd be heard. Attention is something we don't need. I'm not too sure about the ceiling. We're in an old basement; the other part looked newly renovated. I can't be sure what's above us."

"You're such a negative Nancy," Joe retorted, but continued, "Yeah, I guess we don't have the best options, but at least we have something?" He smiled, hoping to cheer-up his brother and Kailey.

"Maybe we should check out our options after we get some strength back," she really gave the brothers a close look. "We are all exhausted and don't know if our energy will be needed for something else. Why don't we take turns sleeping?"

Frank smiled, the girl was brilliant. "Sounds terrific. I'll take first watch. You two get your beauty rest."

"Okay," Joe said.

"I will wake you if I hear them coming back,"

"Sounds good," Kailey replied after a long yawn. She situated herself between the brothers. The teens were facing the door, trying to become comfortable against the concrete and dirt floor.

Frank remained awake. The only way to do that he decided was to keep his mind on the case at hand. Who were these men and what did they want? They weren't too bothered at grabbing another innocent teenager. Ammo they weren't short on. Someone is or had been the wealthy benefactor to this operation. Most likely it was the Warren fellow. He was calling all the shots.

Trying to recall the events at the barn, Frank swore he mentioned checking up with someone. Maybe he is the head man, but acts as though it is a man without a face. Now that would be pretty clever. What would that have to do with their father's most recent case? Nothing. That was a simple one. So either that guy is lying or his father was. It has to be Warren.

So, if he's fibbing, why? He's so dramatic for a reason. Maybe he's trying to pull attention away from something. It's always the little things. Nothing was coming to Frank as he recalled all the conversations from the last few hours.

These men seemed to know of his family. They seemed professional and not rash, more like methodical. Maybe they hadn't expected them to escape and get his father down there that quick. Maybe it was the rapid pace at which the night was going that unnerved the older Hardy. They had no break; they've each been going all day. And he had no idea where they were.

With the continued relocation, Frank suspected something had the kidnappers rattled. Who was in charge of such a large operation with the ability to fund such a renovation like this basement. It had every high-tech gear imaginable and was pristine compared to the section the teenagers currently occupied.

From then Frank was lost in thought. He was coming up with the most hair-brained theories. He was only brought to reality by something on his shoulder. It was Kailey, she had finally relaxed and was leaning on him. He smiled, and then dived back into his thoughts.

Time passed quickly before Joe began to wake up. Frank got his attention and mouthed for him to be quiet. Joe responded for him to sleep because he couldn't remained cramped up on the floor any more. Frank nodded his head and closed his eyes, willing himself to get some rest. There were just too many maybes, and that made him uncomfortable.

Joe was up and bored. Frank had finally nodded off with Kailey leaning all over him. He paced for a while and tried the floor for a loose spot where they could possibly dig out of. He thought better of the idea. It was winter time. There was no way they were going to get out that way. Frustrated, he pound is fist on the wall. Then he just stood there, angry with his head and arms resting against the old musty cement.

"Are you alright?"

The quiet voice startled Joe. He turned around and noticed Kailey looking at him. She rubbed her eyes, barely smearing her makeup. She smiled, 'man she's gorgeous,' Joe thought.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he responded walking over to the young woman in front of him.

"Okay, whatever you say, after you just hit the wall." They both went into fits of laughter, but stopped as they heard a moan from Frank who resituated himself.

"Oh, I thought he had gotten up for a moment."

"Me too." Kailey stood up and dusted off her clothes. "So you haven't broken out of here yet?"

"Nope, it's actually more difficult than I had previously imagined."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, apparently it may be difficult to dig through frozen ground."

"Oh," Kailey smiled, "How about your ceiling theory?"

"Haven't given that too much thought."

"Oh, well, while we are sitting here with nothing to do and no plans, why don't you fill me in on your car ride?"

"It wasn't that exciting actually. It was probably the longest and most boring one of my life."

"How come?"

"The first thing the driver says as he gets into the car is 'if one of you speak, my friend here will shoot the other one, got it' and so Frank and I stayed silent. His friend spent to whole ride cleaning his weapon of choice."

"Oh, well that kind of puts a damper on things," Kailey interjected.

"You've got that right," Joe smiled and continued, "Anyways, the driver was flying through the town so I have no real idea where we are, hopefully Frank does. None of the goons talked either so the quietness and tension just elevated after each pothole and little slide. Uneventful is probably the best description of the trip. How about yours?"

"I guess the no speaking is a universal thing. As we hopped in and I asked 'now where are we going' or something like that and the man in the passenger's seat spun around and slapped me."

At this Joe backed away from Kailey and slammed his fist against the wall.

"Doesn't that hurt?" she asked as he pulled his red knuckles away.

"Yeah, but I can't believe they did that. They are absolute scum. That man hit a girl."

Seeing that Joe wasn't taking this news lightly, Kailey decided to continue, "I'm fine and the rest of the ride was painfully quiet. I felt a bit nauseous, but I'm sure it was from lack of sleep and the speed at which the car flew down the road." She quickly added when she saw the emotions on the younger hardy's face.

He knelt down and check out her face to make sure that was all. Satisfied he smiled, "That would have been something I would have said."

"I didn't know what was wrong with me for saying that in a car full of large, angry men."

"It happens, don't worry."

"I won't, thanks Joe," Kailey replied. "Okay so do you have a plan to break free? We won't even know if they are going to like feed us and stuff."

"Well nothing definite."

"Oh, well then let's get to it."

The two of them alternated pacing, drumming, and lounging on the ground. This took a while because after the reevaluation of their situation, Kailey and Joe became a little more hopeless. After getting out they had to get past those is the other part of the basement, up the stairs, and leave this property with getting killed by trigger-happy goons.

It had been at least an hour before Kailey broke her pacing and faced the younger Hardy. "I've got it!"

"Really? Well, spit it out!" Joe responded, jumping up.

"Hold your horses Joe. Okay, well what if we could lure one of them to take one of us out of here? Do you think that could work?"

"Yeah, possibly."

"But…."

"But, what reason would they let one of us out?"

"Bathroom run or sick?"

"Maybe, but we'd have to be really convincing. What if they don't care? Or what if one of us has to remain next to a goon at all times? How would they manage to get out and rescue the others?"

"Those are all good questions." They each started at the new voice. Frank looked up at his brother and Kailey. "I think I can help you."

"Okay, so genius boy, what's your plan?"

Frank began, "Well either Joe or I, presumably me, will act very sick and be escorted to the bathroom. Or if they just bring something to help soothe me, then attack whoever's at the door."

"Sounds, great, but no offense, he's going to overestimate if anything. So like he's really going to go for you two? Why don't I request to use the bathroom? After all I'm a girl and I can be pretty persuasive."

The brothers looked at one another. It was a silent eye conversation. Frank was doubtful and over protective. Joe was anxious, but had faith this girl could standup for herself. It was decided.

"Sounds like a believable plan," Frank responded.

"Good, well now why don't you go back to sleep, Frank you look horrible. Joe I'll talk to you a little while longer then ask. It will be less suspicious."

"Sounds good," Joe turned to Frank, "Nighty, nighty Frank."

Kailey snickered as Frank rolled his eyes at his younger brother and tried to get comfortable on the ground.

Joe and Kailey just finished going through the last little kid hand game they could think of. So Kailey got up and approached the door.

She knocked three solid knocks and said, "Hey! I need to use the bathroom! Someone out there? A girl's gotta go!"

There was no answer, so she repeated this a few more times, "Please, it's an emergency, tell Warren." She was wary about using his name because she wanted it to be one of the other criminals, who she could easily fool. If he was her ticket out of the cell, Kailey was taking it.

Prepared to start the knocking ceremony again, she was taken aback at the sound of the lock moving when her hand went to hit the door.

A raspy voice warned them to vacate the immediate area by the door. She said yes and moved. Moments later it was opened to a middle-aged man with glasses. It was the driver of her car earlier. 'Yes!' She thought, 'what luck!'

Behind him was Warren. "I heard you needed the bathroom. I am much obliged to have my comrade Henry take you there. I just wanted to warn you that if you don't return in 15 minutes, these boys will be seriously injured, much to my dismay."

"Got it," Kailey replied, anxious to leave the leader's presence.

"That's it then." Warren strode off.

Henry bid Kailey forward. Once she was outside the cell, the door slammed shut. She was one step closer to freedom. Only a few men with guns at the ready for her friends, a team of criminals beyond the basement, the leader's crew in the house, and the nervous man leading her through the maze of the basement complex. Nothing too much.

**Author's Note: Please let me know what you think! Thanks!**


	9. Uncertain

I just realized that the previous chapter was really long, sorry! Like a thousand words over my usually, I went overboard a bit. I hope you enjoy this!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Hardy friends or family

Chapter9

The two investigators were in the car, just having left the station. They had to give their reports after the explosion to the local police station. Everything was incinerated. Officer Carl had hooked his phone up in the tech lab and the squints were working hard to enlarge and analyze his photos. Understanding they were busy Sam and Fenton decided to collaborate somewhere else.

The silence wasn't uncomfortable. Each man was pulling out their own theories on case of the missing teens. Each was hoping for a "Eureka!" moment because time was slipping away and the facts were few.

Mr. Hardy came to the realization, "It doesn't make sense because they are also confused."

Sam gave him a strange look, "Fenton, what do you mean?"

"I don't believe they had planned on Tony being there and noticing their car. I think that messed up their plan."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, if the boys hadn't returned, and let's say worst case scenario Laura and I fell asleep, which would mean we wouldn't have noticed until the morning after. They were out late, and it's understandable that we trust them both enough not to always stay up and wait like overprotected parents. What if they had planned on giving a ransom call or note?"

"Their plans were totally botched."

"You go that right," Fenton was now getting extremely animated as he was connecting the dots, "So their plans are set back and completely thrown off, hence the stopping off at the barn and grabbing the kids for a second time."

"I guess so, but.."

"But what Sam?"

"How can you be sure?"

"Well, okay what if they just were holding them for ransom. So they wouldn't know what to do when they weren't five steps ahead because we learned the kids were kidnapped earlier than the criminals has planned. Once they heard of me coming into the picture so soon, they probably checked on the kids who were long gone. After Frank called, the police and I were coming. They had to clear out A-SAP. In a rush they went for the kids because they still need them for something and the barn was blown up because that was the fastest way to clean up the mess they left."

"Wow, I do think you've got something there Fenton. What do we do?"

"As much as it may hurt me to say it," Mr. Hardy paused, "I think our best bet is to return home. We have nothing more to go on. The car report was as vague as possible. I should at least be there to answer the ransom, Laura doesn't need to. But as soon as something is known, I must be contacted."

"Yes you shall, my friend, yes you shall," Sam said as they drove off toward Bayport.

It was a quiet ride. They had the police scanner on, eager for a development. There was nothing so Sam turned on the music. He couldn't believe that Fenton Hardy was returning to Bayport. He usually never returns until he has good news for his wife.

Sam left earlier when Fenton got a frantic call from his wife that none of the children were home. That was when Mr. Hardy looked at the floor a spilled everything to her- all his worries and theories. Of course he assured her that they will be returned in great condition. Fenton only prayed that he was right.

Frank stated that the criminals had not been aggressive or revengeful, more like methodical. It was almost like they were a fragile and important product. But why would that be? Fenton pondered on this train of thought blocking out the music.

Finally, Mr. Hardy reached over and turned down the radio to get his partner's undivided attention. "Sam, we need to make a stop."

"What is it?"

"I'll tell you when I get there. I need to think this over first."

"Well, I'm here to bounce your ideas off of."

"Thanks," Fenton sighed a stated everything he knew and had learned about the case. He ended his spiel with a few questions for his partner, "So why would they treat the children almost as cargo? No ransom yet? Who are these sophisticated criminals and what do they want with my sons?"

Sam sighed. It was the one question he had dreaded being asked. He was at a loss with the way the case was unfolding. Carefully he spoke, "Fenton, maybe they are the carriers, transport, you know pick up and drop off. Maybe they got more than they bargained for."

"So maybe there are other cases like this?"

Sam finally followed his partner's train of thought. He continued, "Possibly and they would be accessible through a police database!"

Fenton was grinning like a Cheshire cat, they made a break! Only thing was getting the officers to cooperate with them and finding a pattern. Morning was coming, so they did what they needed, made a coffee run and trucked on through.

It had been way too long Joe thought as he paced. His brother had fallen asleep and he was fretting about Kailey. He couldn't believe they just let an innocent civilian risk her life for them. They didn't even know her that well, but he and his brother trusted her.

He couldn't bear counting for too long, so he just began humming a song. Fifteen minutes, why such an extended bathroom break? Maybe it was nowhere near where they were being held, so Warren thought about the time needed? Maybe he was being considerate since she was complaining about women problems. Ewe, not thinking about that Joe decided.

Tired of wearing down the floor, he leaned against the door, hoping to hear something useful. He had no such luck. After a few minutes he began to back away, but as he did he heard a rustle. The men were moving outside the door. Maybe she had returned, Joe hoped.

His was disappointed as the door creaked open showing two large and heavily armed men. Each stared at him.

Then the one on the right looked to his associate, "So what do we do shoot'm?"

Joe looked at the other man, pleading with his eyes for him and his brother to stay alive.

A/N: Please review, then I will upload the next chapter! I hope you enjoyed it!


	10. StrongWilled

Thank you for the review, I do plan on not having the brothers be overshadowed by their guest too much more, just this chapter seemed the only plausible way the teens could learn something more about the position they were in. I felt that since Joe is upset and a lot of built up energy he was pacing (hitting the wall wasn't helping), while Frank fell asleep from mental and physical exhaustion.

Hope you enjoy this new chapter, I haven't actually done this, but it seems somewhat plausible, right?

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hardy clan.**

Chapter 10

It hadn't taken too long to leave the rotting basement, bypass to renovated part, and get to the bathroom in the mansion. The odd thing was it being upstairs. Henry, the buffoon chosen to watch over they young woman, was determined to remain outside the door. Kailey could hear him breath and it was not the most comfortable feeling.

"Can you please back away? Seriously, I can't do my business when listening to your deep breathing."

Her pleading was met with a grunt. She crept toward the door and saw his shadow retreat. Kailey purposely moved around the bathroom with as little noise as possible. Being creative was her specialty. En route to the bathroom various ideas filtered through her mind of ways to seem as though she was in there, while she explored the mansion.

Eventually, Kailey came up with the idea to fill up an empty container with liquid and lean it at an angle so it would drip in the toilet. It didn't take long to set up when she came in. It was a precaution, so she didn't feel too concerned with it.

The room was quite small, but above the tub was a window. It would be a close squeeze. Kailey decided it was her only option, so she prayed there was a nearby window that would allow her access to the rest of the building.

Slowly easing herself on the tub and through the window, Kailey held onto the ledge that was decorative, yet strong. There was a window close to her left side, so positioning her feet on the bathroom window, her hand reached for the other sill.

Once she got a good grasp, she pulled herself through. It made some noise as the screen broke and the window creaked open. The rest of the mansion had not been restored and didn't have heating for that matter. So she was absolutely freezing, having shed her big coat and shoes in the restroom. Kailey got up and took in the room. It was a guest room no doubt. There was nothing personal in it.

She sucked in her breath as a shadow went past the door and creaked. It moved on momentarily. So she took this time to take out Henry's cell phone from her pocket and dialed 911. Putting it on mute and silent, she went to the closet.

In a hushed toned said, "I have been kidnapped with my two friends the Hardys. Please alert the police to our location. I know you are recording this. I took this phone from one of my captors and he is coming back soon because he probably noticed," She paused dramatically, "I have to go, I can hear his footsteps. I just don't want to die please save me. My name's Kailey. Thank you." She ended the call and returned the cell to her pocket.

Relieved that she was not heard she ruffled through drawers and desk in the room. There wasn't anything useful she could relay to the brothers. Thankfully she still had her watch on, and noted there was not that much longer before she needed to return. Quite nervous, Kailey dared crack open the door. Her guard was perched on the steps, avidly watching the events unfold beneath him.

Approximately three minutes left before he would come knocking. Taking a deep breath she maneuvered around the door without it creaking and reached above, feeling around the door frame. The tips of her fingers finally grazed a thin key, which she grabbed and stuffed in her pocket.

Content with her plan, Kailey kept her eyes on Henry as she walked down the hall past the bathroom. Henry continued sharing glances between down stairs and at his watch that was timing their entire excursion. Easily enough the door was opened. Sneaking over to the ventilation shaft, she could barely hear whispered tones.

"We'll need to feed those brats eventually. It won't look good if there are health issues, even though they are a pain."

"I understand. But has Hardy responded to the message yet?"

"No. He's probably still cooped up at the police station. His wife is probably asleep, so hasn't noticed the ransom note."

"Whose choice was this anyways to grab those brats. Especially ahead of schedule."

"Yeah, now everything is slowly disintegrating, all that we have worked for, to form this agency. We will not let some punk teens mess this up."

"Since we know he has means of getting plenty of money under the radar, it should be a no-brainer."

"Unless he finds out about that one family that did go to the police."

"Champ, that was years ago. By the time he puts two and two together, we will be long gone with our money and the kids returned."

"Yes boss. Anything else?"

"Nothing right now. That girl should be returning soon, I'll go notify Henry to get a move on. He has better things to do than babysit."

Worried that he was going to ruin her plan, she left the musty old room. Henry was still sitting down. Kailey slowly made her way to the bathroom door, key in hand. She began working on it quietly. It took forever to turn, but once it clicked she threw the door open and jumped inside.

Inhaling deeply, she lowered her rapidly beating heart. Putting together what the men were talking about was going to need some information from the brothers. Kailey rearranged the bathroom and slipped her clothes on.

While she was fixing her shoes, Henry knocked on the door. "Come on miss, let's go."

"Okay, just a minute Henry." She flushed the toilet, washed her hands, and then opened the door.

He met her with a grim look and she followed his gaze to the man retreating down the stairs to the discussing room. Giving his a smile, Kailey walked in step with him down the stairs.

"So, Henry, how long have you worked in this position?"

"Quite some time," he answered and looked intently down at his watch.

"Oh, so you know everyone here pretty well then?"

"Yes, one could suppose that."

"I guess one could. Would you consider yourself a willing person aiding-and abetting in a crime?"

He stopped and turned to look her in the eyes, "Now no more of that miss. You mind your business and I'll mind mine."

Kailey was then taken into his grasp as Henry led her through the first level and into the basement. He had quickened his pace and refused to acknowledge her any further. They were coming around one corner when she heard, "So what do we do shoot'm?"

Terrified at the scene she was about to come upon, Kailey broke into a jog, dragging Henry with her. She stopped when she came upon the standoff. Two men with large guns were aiming at a defenseless Joe who was still in the cell, leaning against the back wall.

"Hem, hem," she managed, which brought the guards attention and weapons to her. "I'm back so you can put those away now, right Henry?"

"Yes, of course," Henry said, his nervousness noticed in his strained voice.

"I don't think so," said the one to her right. "You see He said we could have at'em after fifteen minutes."

Kailey swallowed, and glanced at Henry's watch it was at 14:54. With a sigh of relief she said, "You are mistaken sir, it has not been that long yet."

"Really sweetheart, why would we believe you?"

"Oh, your watch must have a delay Henry. See," Kailey pointed the watch out to the men, "It has just reached fifteen minutes, so let me in and leave them alone."

The men glanced at each other and motioned for her to step forward. Once she was against the back wall, they slammed the cell door.

Inside she let out a deep breath. Once she opened her eyes, Kailey could tell the worry and concern bubbling in both of the boys. Joe was and Frank both went to her side, trying to read the expression on her face.

She was ready to tell them her idea, but was cut off by a frantic "NO!" down the hall, followed by guns going off.

**Author's Note**: hem, hem- what is the first character that comes to mind?


	11. Excitement

I hope you enjoy this and I want to thank those who keep reading. I hope you love (or at least like) this chapter!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the Hardys

Chapter 11

Mr. Hardy and Sam Radley were tired to say the least. Their night had consisted of driving and looking meticulously through police reports for any resemblance to the case of the Hardy brothers. Other officers had given up long ago, leaving the partners to go through files on hand and online. Kidnapping and missing persons was a large category because they widened it to the entire state.

"Found it!" Fenton shouted. As his partner came over he began, "Look these teenagers were kidnapped, by professionals. No culprit was ever found or felt like it needed to be pursued because they were returned after the ransom was paid. Think about it, what if this is the only one the police have knowledge of?"

"You mean the parents or guardians complied with a note that warned them about getting the police involved? They got the money and their 'valuables' were returned?"

"Yes. There is no way to know who this may have happened to. It says in the report that the police were only notified after the kids were picked up."

"Wait does it say where they were picked up?"

"Let me see," Fenton looked over the documents. "Somehow the perpetrators got whim of police involvement and left the kids in a car in a back alley down town."

"Okay, so it's a whole new ball game if the police are involved then?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"So if they are out of their element, then they are due to slip up. Correct?"

"Most likely. Therefore we need to find who owned the car they were in and if they are involved."

"Sounds like a great lead, my friend."

The two investigators proceeded to compile more information on the case. Not too much later an officer walked in the conference room. "Hardy?"

"Yes," Fenton said as he stood up and approached the man.

"A call came in from 911 earlier with a girl stating that she was kidnapped with the Hardys."

"And!"

"Well, sir they are currently dispatching to the location of the call. I was ordered… to… notify …you.." The man trailed off as Sam and Fenton bolted past.

One officer motioned to the investigators as they stepped outside and made for their car. "You two will follow, but will let us handle it. We have no idea how many people are in there in addition to the victims."

After agreeing the partners jumped in the car and followed the sirens. The ride seemed almost tedious as the minutes dragged on. Even bypassing traffic and disregarding lights didn't simmer down the anxiousness boiling beneath Mr. Hardy's calm façade. He needed the verification that the teens were unharmed.

Eventually, Sam pulled off on an embankment behind the crowd of police vehicles. The investigators made their way behind the officers breaking off into teams. Eager to know the prognosis on the apprehension of the kidnappers, Fenton quickly introduced himself and demanded an update.

Understanding the PI's distress, the older officer sighed and then answered the pleading man, "Sir, as of right now all we know is that there were shots fired not too long ago. No we don't know the reason for them going off. There are teams scouring the area and will be feeding me information shortly. From that we will send in a rescue squad."

"Okay, thank you sir," Fenton replied to the officer and took a step back to converse with Sam.

"I got it all. The question is what are we going to do?" Sam said.

"Well, it only makes sense to follow the officers depending on the captors' orders. We are not going to sit on the side lines."

"Yes, okay. Fenton I'm sure they're fine. It was probably just warning shots."

"MmmmmHmmm," his partner replied looking into the distance.

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"I was just thinking. If the case was dismissed that must mean there is a cop in the precinct giving out information about our progress to these criminals willy nilly and covering up past cases."

"Any idea of who it could be?"

"Not a clue, but that doesn't mean I can't figure it out while I'm out here getting my boys," Fenton replied and got out his phone. After a few minutes he came back. "Sam, I just talked to the chief and he has had his suspicions for a while. With our confirmation he will begin an all-out internal lock down and investigation with some officers from another branch that are trustworthy."

"That's fantastic!" Sam exclaimed, but was cut off from continuing by the head officer furiously barking orders into his walkie talkie. The duo walked up to the man.

"Davis and Hollows hang back, while the others come around. We are going in. Follow procedure!"

Armed with guns in front and protected gear officers approached the house carefully. Not a soul was visible through the upstairs or the downstairs windows. There were no entrances into a basement from the outside. Fenton and Sam geared up and followed the men onto the porch past quite a few unmarked vehicles.

I can only assume that the bad guys knew the cops presence and therefore did not go through the useless announcement of "It's the police. Open up" and barged in. No one had any problems with it, so they scoped out the mansion. Death was sure to come to the first man to dare open the basement door, so the officers first checked out the first and second levels.

The investigators were only allowed inside the premises after it was cleared. Head Officer Turner took his team and cautiously turned the handle. Hustle and bustle of antsy men could be heard on the other side, so he motioned for silence and swiftness.

With the door open all the way he shouted, "Weapons on the ground and hands in the air. You are under arrest. All those who do not comply will be treated accordingly."

The funny thing was there was no one in front of the stairs. Officer Turner chose to go down the steps while the other armed officers filed in after him. Sweeping the immediate area each was surprised at the size, and took a minute to adjust to the movement at the other end.

Breaking off a team scrambled to left after retreating criminals, while another containing the PIs headed to the right. "Man it's a dang maze down here," an officer in the right sided crew stated as they tried to find their way out.

He was greeted with a mix of "ssshhhush" es and "be quiet"s. Fenton told them to stop as they came upon a cell door bolted shut from the outside. The other cells that they had previously passed were empty and not locked. Filled with hope that the teens were in there Mr. Hardy went to open the door. An officer held him back and opened it himself, not willing to risk a civilian's life (in his perspective).

On defense, the cops held up their weapons as the door opened. The sight before them was quite unexpected. A brown-haired and a blond-headed boy were protecting some one behind them and only looked slightly relieved at the presence of law enforcement.

With one more step into the cell the officer knew why they were uneasy. A man with a gun pointed at them was standing in the corner. Reading the situation, and thinking he could have it under control in mere minutes, the officer began to say, "sir, lower your weapon," before a shot went off, which was followed by maniacal laughter.


	12. Recounting

Here's the next segment! I hope you enjoy it even though I don't own the Hardys:)

Chapter 12

Time slowed down. The men outside the door held back the private investigators. The officer inside pulled out and fired his weapon. The teens hit the floor. No one breathed out of fear that it was not over. The laughter slowly died.

Frank looked up to see the officer slowly approaching their captor who was on the ground with the gun still in his possession. Joe noticed the officer kick away the weapon and announce for the rest of the team to enter carefully. The teens stiffly moved from their cramped positions on top of one another.

Mr. Hardy rushed in. "Thank goodness you are okay," he said with tears fighting to fall from his misty eyes as he helped his boys up. Sam was right by his side leading the teens out of the cold cell.

"Thanks dad," Frank managed.

"Thank you," Kailey and Joe said in unison.

The office came back out and approached the exhausted group. "You know I'll have to take your statements."

"Yes," the teens replied with tad bit of annoyance slipping through their quick answer.

Mr. Hardy jumped in, "It can wait a few minutes until they are checked out. They will be upstairs."

As there was no argument, Sam preceded the group, looking for more criminals hiding out. Most were in handcuffs being dragged out of the basement. Shouts and profanity was yelled, but rapidly cut off by frustrated officers.

They moved into the kitchen that was well-lit and looked as though it was put into use recently. Luckily there was hot chocolate and pots in the cupboards that Fenton grabbed while the kids took a seat.

The partners really took a good look at the teens while the water boiled. Disheveled only began to describe the weary looks on their faces and the state of their clothes. With a sudden realization, he snatched the phone out of his pocket and ran into the other room.

After three rings, a voice asked, "Fenton, what is it? Did you find them?"

"Yes, yes we did."

"Oh, that's wonderful! Can I talk to them?"

"Laura, right now they are trying to warm up and stay awake. I'm going to bring them home in a little bit. The officers are coming in to question them right now. I'll have to call you back."

"Okay sweetie. Thank you for the call. Tell them I love them."

"I will. Goodbye."

"Goodbye Fenton."

After hanging up he returned to the kitchen at the same time a few officers were trying to enter it. Placing his phone in his pocket and staring them down he asked, "What can I do for you?"

"Well, you could let us in the kitchen so we can get final statements from the children. Then you can leave."

Joe looked at his brother who was also smirking. That attitude wasn't going to get that officer very far with his father. Telling from his stance, the brothers knew their father was ready to pounce at the man with the badge. He had probably been working all through the night to find them and was due to explode at someone.

Mr. Hardy took a deep breath and looked at Sam. "You can come in," he didn't move from his stance in front of the entry way and continued, "But you will wait until they have some food and drink into their system. Then they will recount their story. Got it?"

The second officer readily nodded, completely understanding the underlying venom in the father's voice. Realizing his arrogant partner had not responded, he gave him a nudge. Glancing around the room from the exhausted teens to the aggravated investigators and finally to his partner, the first officer agreed.

After the water was warmed and distributed in mugs for the teens and the investigators, the police officers took to chairs and sat by the table. Silence pursued as the group sipped and slurped their drinks and ate a bag of chips Sam had found that wasn't expired.

"Are you ready to begin?"

The teens glanced at one another, then Frank spoke, "Yes we are."

"Okay so what happened?"

Frank began, "As we were preparing to enter the van outside of the pizza shop, the three of were kidnapped. It was done in a professional manner I had noticed. The men tied our hands and covered our mouths so we wouldn't communicate. After a long drive we were brought to a large barn and locked into a room. The walls were made from those things that form cubicles in large office buildings. Understanding was an odd setup, once the three of us were left alone and undid the ropes, we broke out." He stopped to take a sip of the hot chocolate, and then continued, "Eventually, we got outside and drove one of their vehicles out of there. Joe grabbed a set of keys. Kailey and I were thankful because there was no way we could have possibly made it too far in this weather."

"Yes, of course, what happened next?"

Joe answered the impatient officer, "We arrived at a house approximately ten minutes away and an older woman answered the door. She was quite the gracious host, inviting us in and taking care of us. Frank called the police and our father, while Kailey and I took up refuge in the kitchen. A man came to the door a little while later claiming that he had lost three kids. The sweet old lady told him good luck and of course she would call him if they did happen to cross her path."

Frank interrupted, "Wait what happened to that number?"

"Wasn't it on that sheet by the front table?" Kailey suggested.

"Well, yeah that's what I thought, but I don't exactly remember it as we were running out."

"Yeah, it's not like we were preoccupied or anything."

"Oh be quiet Joe. It has to still be there somewhere. I don't think the old lady threw it away. Dad, did your guys find it when they searched the place?"

"No, I don't think so, but they may have thought it was trivial. I'll ask when we're done here. By the way how did she get my number?"

Frank replied, "I wrote it on the pad on the front table, next to the phone. I figured it would be good to have in case of any emergencies."

"Thank goodness you did."

"Yeah, I figured the barn wasn't that far away, and they were bound to notice us missing soon enough. I believe picking us up and putting us there was a big detriment to their overall plan. Checks on us would be fairly frequent. The three of us managed to escape pretty soon after their first visit, well technically the second one because the first time they just laughed and threw us in the room."

"Yeah, that wasn't exactly pleasant."

"I'm sure we can agree on being kidnapped is an unpleasant experience. What happened next at the woman's house?"

Joe sighed and continued his tale. "Where was I?"

Kailey piped up, "She had just told the man she'll contact him, and basically shoved him out the door."

"Now, the look on his face when she seemed as though the old woman was going to lecture him about taking care of teenagers, oh it was priceless. Anyways, she waited until he pulled away and returned to the kitchen. Desperate to stuff us with as much food as possible and keep herself busy in the kitchen, she persuaded us relax in front of the television in the other room. As there weren't many stations, we finally just stopped and tried to get comfortable. We knew the police and dad were on the way. Those bozos decide to sleep when the old lady asks to grab some more covers from the upstairs closet. I agreed and only turned on the little side lamp next to the closet because the others weren't working. I have the blankets in hand and turn to leave, when a gun is brought to my back and he makes a point to not make noise. Therefore, I follow his orders to go downstairs, to get Kailey and Frank's attention and then we go outside and are put in another SUV and taken to the barn."

"You go back to the barn, same one as before?" the antsy officer asked as the teens sipped their cocoa.

"Yes" was the reply.

"What happened next?"

"Oh, well we were separated and carted off here. The man didn't trust us three in a car together," Kailey responded. "We were brought to the basement of the old mansion and put into the basement. We realized we weren't going to get out of there by ourselves, so we took turns sleeping. at one point Joe and I were talking, I came up with the idea for me to go out there because they wouldn't put as much guarding on me as they would them."

"Neither of you should be making these decisions. You are kids for Christ's sake, just listen to your captors and everything would have gone fine," the extremely agitated officer exclaimed. This outburst got everyone's attention.

"Sir, I don't care who you think you are, but I am going to advise you to leave right now because you aren't helping this situation any. Your partner will do just fine," Mr. Hardy said, standing in front of the bizarre man. "Radley, please take him out of here."

"Sure thing Fenton," said Mr. Hardy's partner, walking around and grabbing the officer's arm and leading him out.

"I am so sorry about my partner. He hasn't been himself lately."

"Lately?" Frank started, but was stopped by his father, mouthing later. So the boy looked at Kailey to continue.

"Joe was totally against it. I agreed it was risky. They didn't know me, and we didn't know them. These criminals didn't seem to favor the boys, so logically I was our best chance at learning something new," she paused, slurping away. "After getting the guards attention, I persuaded them that I had to use the ladies' room. I was to have one man keep guard on me the whole time. I snuck out of the bathroom and called man was sitting on the stairs, not paying attention to me. I heard from the vents in the other room the men discussing taking better care of us. They needed us for their operation."

Fenton jumped in, "What else did they say?"

"Mr. Hardy, I didn't learn that much, oh wait! They said something about you finding some case, but reckoned that you wouldn't figure it out until they had already high-tailed it out of here and we were returned."

"Oh, yeah, I did find that case. I had helped me a little bit."

The officer intervened, determined to stay on track. "Kailey, what else happened? Did you hear anything else?"

"I ran back to the bathroom and Henry knocked on the door soon after. He took me back to the cell, but I asked him a few questions because he seemed like a nice guy. He got extremely defensive when I insinuated that he was a ruthless criminal. I did manage to drop his phone back into his pocket when he was directing to the basement," Kailey finished and munched on some more chips. She looked at Joe, letting him know he could continue the story.

"Okay, anything more you can think of?"

She responded by shaking her head because her mouth was full, but then spit out a "no".

Joe took the reins of the tale, "Well, while she was gallivanting around the mansion. Frank and I were stuck in the cell. He mostly slept because we knew there was no way for us get out safely and we could only wait for Kailey to return. I'm not sure how much time had passed until the door was opened by some armed men. They were deciding what to do with us since they had thought it had been fifteen minutes and she hadn't returned."

The officer stopped Joe, "Can you clarify that for me please?"

"Sir, they had their weapons pointed at me and they remained outside of the cell. One asked the other 'should we shoot'm' and I shook my head no. Then, Kailey and that guy came up right in time and told him his watch was fast. She was shoved back in the cell with us."

Frank chose to chime in, "Yeah, and she was about to tell us what she found, when there was a frantic yell down the hall. I asked her what she did and she replied nothing."

Everyone looked at her, while she just shrugged her shoulders in protest and grinned.

"And?" Fenton urged his elder son.

"We listened to the door to try and understand what all the commotion was about. Then, I think some rounds went off. We're not too sure why, but it either has to do with someone not doing something that guy liked or he found out about Kailey's call."

The officer turned to Kailey, "Young lady, you understand that was very dangerous?"

"Yes, sir," she replied, then continued, "but if I didn't, would you honestly be here right now?"

There was no reply from the young man, a little embarrassed to be put in his place by a young civilian. Mr. Hardy chose to change the subject and turned to his sons, "What happened next?"

"Honestly dad, it was all a blur," Joe said and Frank nodded in agreement.

Frank continued recounting the minutes before the calvary arrived, "Anyways, all we could hear was shouting, nothing too definite because the walls were pretty thick and the voices seemed far away. Eventually the door was swung open with a livid Warren. Two of his henchmen had guns directed at us, so we went up against the back wall, waiting to see what he said."

"Yeah, those were a tense few moments before he said something like 'I don't know how they found you, but they're coming and we're going to be ready', right Frank?" Joe asked his brother.

"Yeah, that sounds like it. I believe that is when he pulled out his own gun and told us he was going to get us soon, so be ready. Then they left. There was another shot not too long after his dramatic statement, then he came rushing in gun in hand. His henchmen locked him in with us. He wanted to be here when you arrived for some reason."

"Did he say anything to you?"

"No, not directly. He mumbled a few things that I didn't ask to clarify," Frank paused, straining to remember those finite details, then reconvened his tale, anticipating the questions from the officer and his dad. "It was about the idiots, presumably his partners in crime trying to make an escape through some tunnel in the basement. He figured he was more likely to not talk about the organization than the hands of the operation. He chose to let them run off while he hand-picked a select few to protect what they had established."

"Anything else?" the officer asked.

"No, sir, only just then did you guys get us out of there."

"Okay, thank you so much. Now Mr. Hardy, do you have anything to add?"

"Not at this moment."

"Well, then you are all free to go and have a nice day," the officer said before leaving the kitchen.

Fenton looked at the teens and told them, "Get up because we're going home. We aren't needed around here anymore."

"Dad," Frank began, causing the father to turn around, "Don't you have to make a statement?"

"Yes, son, I will add some stuff later to my official report I am going to prepare. I believe this will require the FBI, but first we need some definite proof this passes state lines. First and foremost I shall get you three home, then I will sleep. Your mother is worried sick and I can take care of this later."

"Okay dad, let's hit the road!" Joe said jumping up and smacking his father's shoulder, bounding past him into Sam.

The older Hardys just chuckled at the energy radiating off the younger Hardy. At least he'll sleep in the car was the mutual thought.

**A/N:** The story isn't over yet! Please Review!


	13. Destress

I hope you enojoy this chapter, definitely not much action, but fluff. Thanks for the reviews from SnowPrincess88 on my earlier chapters! Don't worry, more excitement will come! I may have went overboard on the banter, but i had fun:)

**Disclaimer:**I don't own the Hardys or their friends

Chapter 13

"This is the life," Joe commented as he was kicking back and relaxing in living room.

"Don't get too comfortable, my dear brother, we'll have to return to school tomorrow."

Joe sighed, "Frank, don't ruin my moment of peace by bringing that up."

"Well, it will inevitably be brought up, so I thought that I might as get it out."

"Ugh, I know. I know," the blond haired boy muttered as he closed his eyes and made his head sit comfortably against the chair.

"I can't believe that dad just said for us to leave it alone. We could definitely help get more of those guys down."

"Frank, can't you be quiet?"

Joe was met with a pillow to the face that he angrily reciprocated in the general vicinity of his brother's laughter.

"Nice try lil'bro. You should work on your aim, it's horrible."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Joe responded and picked back up Frank's train of thought. "Isn't the FBI being brought in? Dad said we need to focus on school and they don't want teenager hampering their investigation."

"Still, we're the only people that they know of that had firsthand experience behind the scenes of their operation," Frank sighed. "The police got in touch with that other family and learned they were only at the warehouse. Only communication was between meals and bathroom breaks."

"Frank, I'm not one to give up, but this is a lost cause. There is no way we are going to be allowed to help, especially because this operation is believed to be throughout a few states. How can you expect to do well in school if you are distracted?"

"I guess, you are making some sense."

"Yes! Thank you that is all I can ask. Continue being the loving family nerd. I shall be the impulsive, hot-headed, disregarding rules one."

Frank huffed and rolled his eyes and his little brother.

"Oh, and don't forget we still have a house guest, so …"

"Yeah, I know Joe. We should think before getting into dangerous situations."

Earlier, both of their parents sat down and gave them a talk. She is not accustomed to these precarious situations, so they should worry about the safety of their guest and not get into any adventures. Therefore the boys had to stay home and were advised to know get involved with the case.

"So, what do you think of Kailey?"

"What? Why? Are you interested?" Joe rushed to spit out those words.

"No, but you are?"

"Pffft, say…. What?"

"Come on Joe, it's positively obvious that you are attracted to her."

"Well, yeah, she's a girl. Pretty nice. Really smart. Has a BA side to her."

"Sounds more like your type of woman, brother."

"Eh, I don't think so."

"Oh, right you and Callie are still going out."

"How do you forget? Nothing has changed."

"I'm still hopeful," Joe mumbled as he turned away from Frank to get more comfortable in the chair.

"What was that?" Frank asked, already pretty sure of his little brother's sarcastic remark.

"Uh, nothing. I was just talking to myself," was the muffled reply as his face was now in the pillow.

Frank sighed. He didn't understand why his brother was always making sarcastic remarks about his girlfriend. Now he really thought about her and the fact that he hadn't even talked to her since he was kidnapped. He should probably get on that phone call, it wasn't too late.

"Hello?" a sweet voice said at the other end after only two rings.

"Hey Callie, how are you?"

"I'm fine Frank, how are you? What happened last night? Tony told us some stuff, but are you okay?"

"I'm fine. We were kidnapped right outside the pizza shop…" Frank began and retold the story, leaving out some parts, so she wouldn't worry too much.

"I'm so glad you're okay. How are Kailey and Joe?"

"They're good, both sleeping. After sleeping most of the morning and then answering some more questions those two decided they needed to relax even more."

"That sounds like Joe."

"Yep. How was school?"

"Alright, too bad you weren't there in gym when this idiot ran headfirst into the bleachers and got a concussion. The rumor going around is that he was pushed. His older brother, I think it's Richie decided to take it out on the guy and both of them got suspended."

"Whoa, I missed one heck of a day!"

"Yeah, but you won't miss the assembly were they explain to us how fighting is bad."

"Aw man!" Frank replied, dragging it out for emphasis. "How were the classes though? We have a test on Friday in history."

"Yeah, they weren't too bad. You didn't miss anything important there."

"Okay good. Still want to study for it tomorrow?"

"Yeah, it sounds like a good idea."

"Sweet, want to come over after school?"

"Okay. It sounds like a plan," Callie replied. "Oh, and Frank the gang is planning on getting together at the pizza shop Friday night."

"We'll definitely come. Can't say no to food!"

"Okay, I'll let them know! By the way, you sounded a lot like Joe. I have to go, Frank, my mom's calling me for dinner."

"I don't sound like Joe!" Frank retorted, "Anyways, talk to you later Callie!"

"Bye Frank!" were the last two words Frank heard before he hung up.

He returned to the living room with his book bag and plopped on the couch.

"So how's your gal doing?" Frank heard Joe mutter barely above a whisper.

"Gal?"

"Yeah, Callie."

"I know, but gal? I've never heard you refer to her like that before."

"Dude, why do you care? Sheesh, if it means that much to you, I'll just call her Callie."

"Whatever, I just thought it was weird."

"Yeah, okay. Well I think it's weird that you are going to study today even though we didn't have school."

"I'm just studious. As opposed to you."

"What do you mean? I'm a very studious person, just not right now."

"Oh, sorry. Next time I'll be more specific."

"Yeah sure."

Another voice from the hall inquired, "What are you two bickering about this time?"

The boys looked up to see Kailey entering the room dressed in sweats and a t-shirt.

"Oh nothing," Joe replied, "Just our different definitions of being studious."

"Really?" Kailey played along as she took up residence beside Frank on the man-eating piece of furniture and wrapped herself in a blanket.

"Yes. Frank here doesn't believe I'm studious at all just because I'm choosing to kick back and relax since we had no school today," Joe continued.

"Correction Joseph," Frank interrupted. "There was school, but we didn't go because our parents wanted us to get some rest after our long night."

"Frank is implying that you still have homework, even though you didn't go."

"Man, why do you have to be such a party-pooper Frank?"

"I'm just realistic," Frank replied as his younger brother begrudgingly left the comfort of the chair and trudged upstairs. Frank turned to Kailey and said, "At least he's not dramatic."

"Nope, not at all," she replied, smiling at the banter of the brothers. It made her miss hers. "So what are you working on?"

"History. I have an exam Friday."

"Good luck! I'll let you study." Kailey proceeded to lift the blanket off the ground and go to the second level, leaving Frank with his books. As she passed the boys room en route to the guest room, there was a whispered "Hey! Come here!"

She stopped and back tracked to see Joe animatedly waving her into his room. Trying to hold back a laugh at his odd behavior she just went with it. Stopping in the doorway and leaning on the frame she asked, "What is it?"

"Well…" Joe trailed off, while Kailey looked at him expectantly. "I need some help with my work. Before you say anything, I don't wanna ask Frank because I know he's busy and am not necessarily too fond of the way he helps me with math. My friend just sent me a message that we have a ton of work to do since I missed."

"Oh, I guess so. I don't have anything better to do."

"Well now that's the spirit," sarcastically replied and pumped his fist in the air for emphasis.

Kailey just giggled and entered the boy's room, "Yeah definitely, now what are you working on?"

Joe pulled out a few papers and notes, while he explained what he thought they were learning in class. She easily jumped in and began pointing Joe in the correct direction to approach those types of problems. After he correctly finished the first problem, Kailey began to leave.

"Wait," Joe pleaded, turning around to face Kailey. "Can you just chill in here in case I have any more questions. That was only the first problem. And that is usually the easiest, so I have a feeling I made need some more help."

"Sure, but do you mind if I grab my school stuff and just work on in here while you do yours?"

"No that's fine!" Joe answered.

"Okay, well then I'll be right back," Kailey responded as she rushed out the door down the hall.

A few minutes later she was back and threw her various book across the neatly made bed. "Joe?"

"Yeah Kailey?" he replied, not looking up.

"What happened to your bed?"

Joe broke his concentration and took a quick glance at the bed, then returned to his math homework, "It's just made."

"Yeah, well you don't seem like the type that makes your bed."

"And…"

"I just wanted to point that out," Joe shook his head, man this girl was a piece of work. She continued, "So you admit to being a momma's boy?"

"Whoa, what? You've got it all wrong. I fell asleep on top an already made bed earlier. My mom made it before we came home today."

"Oh, I'm just joking around Joe, no need to get too defensive."

Joe laughed, "You're just so funny Kailey. Now stop distracting me."

"Okay," Kailey said as she got situated with all her books.

The arrangement was working out perfectly for their expectations. Joe was getting help with his work without Frank's annoying tone, while Kailey was studying her notes and staying on task. There wasn't too much conversation for a while, only strictly school related talk. It was a relaxing atmosphere.

"So Kailey," Joe began, breaking the concentration in the room. "I have a personal question."

"What is it?" she asked looking up, a little nervous of what it could be.

"Well, I know it's none of my business, but don't you think you should call your father and let him know you are okay."

Kailey took a deep breath. This wasn't a question she expected from this Hardy, the other was more indirectly suspicious. Man that was blunt, she thought, oh no am I taking too long to respond? She cleared her throat and answered, "Um, actually I think he's got bigger fish to fry, and there's no need to worry him about something that turned out fine."

Joe looked up from his work and the distressed girl in front of him. Being kidnapped was more of a no-big-deal thing for him, but for her it was a traumatic experience, wasn't it? Wouldn't her father be bending over backwards with worry. "Kailey, I'm sure your dad would be interested in knowing about the kidnappings. He cares about you. I know my dad asks the same of Frank and I whenever something like this happens."

"Yes, but you don't know him," Kailey replied with attitude, "Sorry, but it is none of your business Joe. I'm not going to tell him. I need to worry about school. He is preoccupied with his work and capturing that fiend."

"Yeah, sorry, I was just curious," Joe mumbled and turned back to his math problems.

The silence was deafening after that quick chat. Neither dared interrupt the other. The tension filled room was suffocating both teens. Frank was the relief when came up later to announce dinner was ready. Frank thought it was odd the way the two of them rushed out the door determined to not make eye contact. Complacent that the rift would be noticed and attended to at dinner he just followed the tow of them downstairs to the nicely laid dining table.

"Wow! This looks delicious Mrs. Hardy!"

"Thank you sweetie. Everyone sit down and I'll get your drinks."

Mr. Hardy came in right on time. After coming through the door he shed his outer clothing, and joined his family who were already digging in to the meal created by his strong and creative wife. Fenton sighed and smiled as he looked around the table. He could feel something was off. Joe wasn't cracking jokes and Frank wasn't making lame comebacks. Kailey was intently focused on her plate. Glancing at his wife, she shrugged her shoulders and moved her head in the direct of their eldest. Fenton took a look at the boy who wasn't taking his eyes off the other teens while he shoveled food down his throat.

"So, how was your day?" Mr. Hardy asked an opened question, expecting a quick answer, he was surprised by the silence. He chose to continue, "So does silence mean that it was alright? Bad? Could be better? You guys have had enough of each other?"

Finally they all looked up at him, and glanced at each other to determine who would speak. He could tell Frank and Joe were arguing with their peculiar facial expressions and Kailey looked confused.

"Well, I had a pretty good day today Mr. Hardy," Kailey responded, capturing the boys' attention.

"That's good considering your {harrowing} night," Fenton stated and was glad to get a small smile across her once stony face. "Joe how was yours?"

"Alright."

"Alright?" Frank jumped in at the chance to antagonize his little brother. "What was bad about it?/ You slept most of it!"

"Yeah, but then you had to go and be all studious and what not and point out that I had homework. So I have to do my homework and can't finish doing nothing the rest of the day like I wanted to."

Fenton just shook his head at his bickering sons, some things never did change. "What do you have to do?"

"Pre-Calc problems."

"OH," Fenton said.

"Exactly," Joe stated, glad his father understood his reluctance and dred.

"It's not that bad, I have an AP History exam Friday. I missed today."

"Oh, boo-hoo mister smarty pants."

"At least Kailey can help you, no one can help me memorize all the events for my test."

"That's so nice of you sweetie," Mrs. Hardy interjected.

"Thanks Mrs. Hardy. It's no big deal, I don't find math too bad."

"Well, still thank you," Mr. Hardy added, making the young girl blush at all this attention.

Noticing there was still a little tension Mrs. Hardy decided to keep the questions flow as they ate. "So boys, what are your plans for the rest of the week and weekend?"

Frank swallowed and answered, "Tomorrow, Callie is coming over to study for the exam. Friday night the gang is getting together for pizza. I think Callie said something about taking you shopping on Saturday if you're still up for it Kailey."

"Do you boys eat anything else besides pizza?" Mr. Hardy asked.

The teens laughed when they all made eye contact. "Well, dad I didn't know there are other types of food out there as good as pizza," Joe said.

The whole room was filled with laughter after that declaration.

"It's okay Mr. Hardy, I know what you mean. I'm pretty sure that's all my brothers eat. Oh, and of course any other junk food in the house," Kailey told the family.

Mrs. Hardy nodded her head in agreement and spoke, "Don't worry, I understand. I have three men to serve on a daily basis. I honestly do not know how they can keep eating after one serving."

Conversation continued being light throughout dinner. Joe and Kailey seemed to have put their differences aside and be a part of the family. They were so wrapped up in enjoying the company, no one noticed the time fly. Mrs. Hardy didn't even think anything of the multiple excursions to the kitchen for food and drink refills- she had insisted when the others offered.

Finally, Fenton looked at his watch, "Oh my, look at the time."

Frank quickly pulled out his phone. "Oh man, I need to get back to work. More history to learn!" He dramatically pumped his hand in the air as he stood up.

Joe rolled his eyes at his brother's enthusiasm, while Kailey just laughed.

Fenton intervened, "First, let's help your mother clear the table. Then, you can go back to studying."

Frank nodded and grabbed his things.

Mr. Hardy turned to Joe, "Oh and you too, help your mother then go to Pre-Calc."

The blond boy sighed and followed the guest into the kitchen. Eventually the family returned to its positions before dinner. En route to Joe's room, Kailey phone rang.

"Hello, Dad?"

A few seconds passed and her brow furrowed even deeper.

"Dad, what is it?" Kailey asked, her father's voice sounded strange. She was scared.

**A/N:** Wow, it's a pretty longer chapter. Please review!


	14. Knowledge

Sorry about the delay in updating, I wasn't sure when to end this chapter, so it's a little long. I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for reviews on previous chapters!

Chapter 14

The deep emotion of Kailey's voice caught the attention of the Hardys.

Kailey caught the three words from the other end, "We've got her."

"What?" she exclaimed.

Her father's voiced sounded more composed as it replied. "She has been arrested."

"NO way!" Kailey replied, her response filled with absolute disbelief.

"Really. I can assure you the police have captured the correct woman. I identified her this afternoon," her father told her, desperate for her to understand.

"That's kind of crazy, you know that dad."

"Yes, but at least you are safe now. You and all your brothers don't need to worry about her anymore."

Kailey let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. It felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. There was something nagging her at the back of her mind, but she ignored it. "So now what dad?"

"Well, I'm going to send someone up there to bring you back while I take care of everything here."

"Oh," she paused, but then quickly continued as to not alarm her father, "Okay that sounds like a plan. How did the police catch her?"

"Yeah. Well, Kailey, I'll let you know more tomorrow. Right now I have to go."

"Okay dad," She sighed. He's always on the run. "Talk to you later."

"Yeah, bye honey."

"Oh, and dad," she added.

"Yes?"

"Thank you so much for calling me."

"No problem sweetheart. I love you."

"I love you too!" she responded and heard the click of the terminated call. With a big smile covering her face, she returned the phone to her sweatpants' pocket.

"What did you dad have to say?" Joe asked from the top of the stairs.

She looked up at Joe, grinning from ear to ear. "My dad says they've caught her!" Kailey exclaimed.

He ran down the stairs as Frank also closed the space between her and his family. "How?"

Her grin faltered as she responded, "Well, I'm actually not too sure." Kailey had paused to take a deep breath, finally everything was going well. Noticing the confused look on her hosts' faces she expanded on her short answer, "He's going to tell me more tomorrow because he had to go. Basically, my dad only told me the police have her locked at the precinct downtown."

"Oh," Frank said.

Mrs. Hardy pushed past her older son to embrace the young woman before her. Her demeanor had taken a complete 180 and Laura couldn't hold back her motherly emotions anymore. "That's great news, Kailey! You must be absolutely thrilled!"

Pulling out of the hug, Kailey took a glance at the seemingly Norman Rockwell family in front of her. "I am extremely relieved mostly."

"That's fantastic! Now go take a seat on the couch and I'm going to whip up a treat real quick to celebrate!" Mrs. Hardy urged, nudging the Hardy men to follow her suggestion.

Soon enough the five of them were enjoying each other's company, laughing at the sitcom, and eating ice cream. All the tension had dissipated. None of them were concerned with the outside world. They were a normal family, being corny and throwing out quirky jokes.

Those minutes flew by and after a while Mrs. Hardy brought the dishes to the kitchen. Then the boys dispersed. Left with the TV, Kailey curled up with the blanket that Joe had retrieved earlier. She was content.

….

"Shhh, don't wake her!" said a woman's voice, harshly, like it was reprimanding someone.

"Don't worry mom, I won't!" was the desperate response that sounded like it was a natural; the line had been used many times before and not in his benefit.

"Come on, we're going to be late, sleeping beauty!" piped in another man's voice.

"Okay, okay, I'm going, sheessh," said the previous man's voice. Rustling could be heard before he continued, "Bye mom, see you later!"

"Bye boys. Have a safe drive and a great day!" declared the caring woman. About a minute later after some hushed comments the front door brought in a taste of the chilly weather. It caused the girl strewn across the couch to stir and grab for more warmth. Yet, she didn't wake, but remained a little longer in the state before sleep, where she was vaguely aware of what was going on in her surroundings.

"I think we've got it!" woke the young woman who had just been disturbed by the slamming door. She groggily sat up and saw an older man quickly shedding his winter jacket and boots. Then he rushed to the kitchen.

Interested in learning what all the commotion was about, Kailey rubbed her eyes and left the comfort of the blankets. Approaching the kitchen she heard the woman from earlier, "Fenton, you must be more quiet. That young woman has been through a lot lately and needs to recharge. She can't do that with you and the boys constantly making a racket."

Kailey entered the room to see an aggravated Mrs. Hardy with her hands on her hips and glaring intently at her husband who looked embarrassed at the lecture. Fenton declared, "I'm sorry Laura. I'll think before I speak next time."

"Good," Mrs. Hardy said smiling. "Oh Kailey, how are you doing?" she asked noticing her standing awkwardly in the doorway half asleep.

"I'm pretty well. Thanks Mrs. H," She turned to the man that was getting comfortable at the table. "What did you find?"

He smiled. Just like his boys, directly to the point. "It's actually not that much. A few more people came out to testify against those men we had arrested. They had identified them at the station earlier," seeing Kailey's surprised face, he elaborated. "We tracked down others that had the same ransom cases."

"Wow, that's fast," she said, thanking Mrs. Hardy for the cup of jo put in front of her and Fenton.

"Yeah, well with the double kidnapping, arrest and explosion, the police are deciding to make this a bit of a priority. They realized that these perps need to be tracked down now before we lose their trail completely."

"At least they've finally got some sense knocked into them. Did you ever figure out if there was a traitor in the midst?" Kailey asked, eager to know more, not too concerned with her growling stomach.

Mrs. Hardy interrupted, "Her sweetie, take some food. I believe your stomach is trying to tell you something."

This got a good laugh from the two at the table. Before resuming their conversation, each took a few minutes to drink and eat in peace.

"So what else happened?" Kailey inquired of the seasoned detective.

"Well," he began, glancing at his wife, "You remember that agitated cop that was questioning you earlier?"

"Yeah."

"Well, kind of forgetting about him since he hasn't showed up to work, we checked his background and there were a few discrepancies, but we're trying to get into contact with him now. If the mole isn't him, the police chief is running through of all the officers on the force and hoping to figure it out by today."

"That's good!"

"Yes," Fenton smiled. Kailey could tell there was something else, but didn't want to push him and have him go into a defensive mode, especially with Mrs. Hardy hovering.

"Why don't you get yourself cleaned up? And we can begin the day!" Mrs. Hardy suggested hearing the dry slurping of the hot beverage. Understanding that remaining there was mute; Kailey agreed and left them in the kitchen.

Perched on the stairs, she could hear Mrs. Hardy ask pointedly at her beloved, "Fenton, why are fueling her investigative sense, it's almost as bad as the boys. I don't really want to answer to her father if anything else happens. I don't remember that man being small or remaining completely calm when his children were involved in something."

"Yes, I know, but I don't want to shut her out. She seems like she needs someone to confide in and I believe our family can be there for her."

"Okay. I agree with you there, but still be careful with the information you divulge. You are the detective. Those kids are just teens and have other things, like school to worry about."

"Honey, don't worry. I will be careful," Mr. Hardy replied and gave his wife a "trust me" deep kiss. This is when Kailey chose to do as she had been asked. Overhearing conversations wasn't part of it, so she slowly retreated upstairs.

There wasn't that much of an exciting day to begin in the Hardy household. Mr. Hardy was gone when Kailey came downstairs. Mrs. Hardy was on the phone. She lugged her backpack to the table and spread out her books. Complete immersed in her studies, Kailey jolted up when there was a tap on her shoulder.

Pulling the earplugs out, she said, "Sorry Mrs. Hardy! I didn't hear you!"

"It's okay honey. Would you like something to drink?"

"Yes please!"

"Okay I'll be right back. Hot chocolate sound good?"

"It sounds perfect!" Kailey responded. Mrs. Hardy scooted off to the kitchen in Mother Hen mode. Trying not to get too engrossed in her studies, Kailey flipped through notecards. Surely, less than ten minutes passed before Laura returned with two steaming cups. The young girl thanked her host as she sat opposite.

After a quick sip, Kailey looked at the older woman across from her who was grinning. Laura asked, "Do you like it?"

"This is phenomenal! What else is in it?" Kailey exclaimed. Excited to drink the warm and soothing liquid down her throat as soon as possible, she sputtered and coughed at the taste of another potent ingredient.

"Just some pumpkin spice," Mrs. Hardy said watching the young woman go for another sip at a slower pace.

"That really makes this drink even more fantastic!"

"Thank you honey. Just drink it slowly before you burn your mouth or spill it all over your books."

"Okay," Kailey replied drawing out the word. "Where's Mr. H?"

"Oh, he just stopped by to pick up lunch and some other snacks because he didn't think he'd be leaving the station for the remainder of the day and won't have time to go and get food."

"Oh. The boys at school?"

"Yep."

"Well, since I'll be going back to school next week because they've captured that woman, I need to keep up with my work. Surprisingly I haven't accomplished too much this week."

"Alright then, I will let you work. In a little bit I'll warm up some soup for lunch. You were outside quite a bit the other night, so I don't need you getting sick on my watch. So, any sniffle or tickle in your throat just let me know," Mrs. Hardy told her as she got up to leave.

"I will! Thank you again."

"No problem sweetheart," Mrs. Hardy said as she kept herself busy, reading magazines and clearing the kitchen counter for lunch. The day easily passed for the women who remained at home. Silence took over the house and was not disturbed until later that afternoon.

"Ma—oom, we're home!" belted a voice that could only be the one and only Joseph Hardy followed by a slammed door.

"Joseph Hardy keep your voice down!" yelled an annoyed Laura Hardy. Her youngest had yet to master subtlety, especially at home. It seemed as he had forgotten about their guest, but that's understandable because they've been rather occupied the last few days.

"Sorry mom!" he whispers back loudly, while Frank laughed. The boys quickly shed their winter attire by the front door and entered the kitchen.

Mrs. Hardy just shakes her head while looking up from her cooking magazine.

Kailey chimed in, "Well, Joe you sure know how to make an entrance!" This comment filled the room with laughter. The boys just continued to scrounge the cupboard and the fridge for some snacks.

Frank turned to his mother, "Oh mom, by the way Callie is coming over in a little bit to work with me."

"Okay, well, just let me know if she's staying for dinner."

"Will do," Frank managed to get out with his mouthful of cookie.

"Don't talk with your mouthful," Mrs. Hardy told her son.

"Yeah Frank, where are your manners?" Joe mocked.

"Har, har, har," Frank replied and smacked his brother over the head.

"Hey!" Joe yelped in defense.

"Hay is for horses," Frank responded, taking a seat next to his mother.

Joe just rolled his eyes and poured a drink for himself, while Kailey giggled. Mrs. Hardy just rolled her eyes at her sons' antics.

Eventually each teen began to focus on their studies until the doorbell rang. Joe chose that moment to try and beat Frank to the door. Kailey just watched the brothers mess around with each other right in the living room.

Kailey ripped her headphones out and headed for the door. The poor girl was probably freezing outside and the boys were completely oblivious. Shortly she opened the door. "Hey Callie!"

"Oh hey Kailey! How are you?" Callie inquired as she entered the house and started to shake off her coat.

"I'm good. You?"

"I little chilly actually." Callie then proceeded to ask, after taking off her shoes, "Where's Frank?"

"Callie?" A muffled voice wondered from the front room. Then there was a scuffle and a "Joe!" Finally Frank Hardy straightened himself out and approached his guests.

"Hi Callie, sorry about that," Frank began and looked back at the living room where Joe was beginning to emerged with an aggravated face. "Ready?"

"Yeah!" she replied.

"Okay, follow me," he said heading towards the kitchen. Then Frank turned to Kailey, "Thanks."

"No problem. Go have fun!" she said giving them her best smirk.

The two passed into the kitchen, then Kailey felt an hand clamp on her shoulder. She looked up.

Joe was standing there grinning, "Nice one."

"Thanks, 'twas nothing."

Joe rolled his eyes. "Do you do anything besides being smart?"

"I like sports."

"Really, like what?"

"Soccer. I'm also part of the high school cheer squad," Kailey paused, seeing his disbelief clear across his face. "Don't even get me started how I got suckered into that one."

"Okay, I won't. But still, YOU. Cheerleading? I'd never thought you'd put those two words in a sentence together unless there was a 'never have I ever' in between them."

"OH, hardy, har, har, you're so hilarious Joe."

"Thanks, I know. It's about time someone else realized it."

Kailey slugged his shoulder and resumed her reading/ focused position at the table. Joe slowly retreated back to his room.

Minutes later, Frank and Callie emerged from the kitchen with steaming cups of hot chocolate. The couple stopped only when Callie grabbed her bag and Frank held the cups. Before going upstairs the two youngsters stopped.

"Kailey, are you still up to going shopping Saturday?" Callie asked, turning around. You could tell she had been increasingly curious about the answer.

"Yes. I definitely am. I need a break from the testosterone."

Callie laughed, "Okay, good. I'll let Lauren know and we'll talk about it more tomorrow."

"Sounds good!" Kailey responded and returned to her book as Frank and Callie ascended the stairs.

A/N: please Review:)


	15. Suspicious

Enjoy! Please review!

**Diclaimer:** I don't own the Hardys.

Chapter 15

Callie left about 6:30 and dinner wasn't served until 7:00. So everyone was preoccupied. Frank and Joe were each upstairs in their respective rooms. Mr. Hardy was busy in his study. Mrs. Hardy happily cooked, chopped, and puréed the family's dinner.

So when the doorbell rang no one thought anything of it. It was probably Callie, she forgot something. Or it could have been a police officer or one of Fenton's colleagues with information on the case.

"I've got it!" Kailey announced getting up quickly from the table. That movement hurt because she had been in that position for a long time that evening, but she just eagerly opened the door with a "hello".

The greeting was returned with a "Good evening, Kailey". The man at the door was in his mid to late forties and was graying slightly at the temples. He had a bit of a haunted look about him that gave off a creepier vibe with the dark, long black coat he was wearing.

She responded with a small smile and a look of intrigue in her eyes, "What are you doing up her Brandon?"

"Your father sent me up here to fetch you."

"Oh, really? So he's not coming."

"No, he has things to do."

"But, of course," Kailey started, and then her phone began buzzing. She brought it from her pocket to her ear in a swift motion and didn't catch the sliver of terror that broke across her father's associate's face.

"Hey dad," she began, but paused, listening to her father, "Yes, I'm fine."

"What are you doing right now?"

"Oh, I'm just finishing looking over my work because Mrs. Hardy is going to give me the exam tomorrow. Dinner should be ready in a little bit."

"Okay good," there was muffled sound and her father came back on, "Kailey I have to go, the chief is on the other line."

"Alright. Well, talk to you soon! Bye! Love you!" she said before hanging up.

Kailey turned to the older man in front of her, "Sorry about that, anyways, I still can't believe you came here so fast."

Brandon replied, "I wasn't a problem. Your father wanted you back home ASAP because now they have her locked away. Missing anymore school isn't a great idea."

"Yeah, I guess," she agreed unwillingly and got a slight shiver. For some reason she had kept her distance, not inviting him inside the Hardy house, like he was a vermin or a vampire.

"Do you want to come in? Do you have a hotel to stay at? It's pretty late to be flying out to Texas."

"No, tonight is fine. I'll go warm up the car and you can bring your bag down. You only have one, right?"

Alarms were going off in her head, why wouldn't he come inside?

During this exchange the boys were interested in seeing the guest. Joe was not at all focused on his studies and took to watching from his window a large, darkly dressed man converse with Kailey at the door for an extended amount of time. She hadn't even called for anyone of the Hardys to come to the door. Then if that man wasn't here for them, then he must be there for Kailey. Who is he and why is he still standing outside. So he quickly left the window and went out to seek advice from Frank.

Likewise Frank had lost focus on his history notes and perked up his ears to see if he could catch any of their conversation because his door was open. Still there was nothing. That's odd, he thought. Starting to get up from his desk he was met with a bewildered Joe in his room.

"What's up?" he asked.

"I think something's off. My gut is telling me to go downstairs."

"Are you sure it's not directing you to the kitchen?"

"Ha ha, very funny Frank. I'm serious. That guy looks sort of peculiar. I've noticed he's stayed outside this whole time, so he must be here to speak to Kailey, but that's still weird, right?"

"Definitely is," Frank replied, "Let's go check it out."

The boys snuck down the stairs catching tidbits of the conversation and Kailey shut the phone as they reached the bottom step.

It was almost 7, so Mr. Hardy stepped from his office, eager to help his wife set the table. For the last few hours he had barely made any progress than the police force had made earlier that day. He was just looking through missing persons that had been filed, but then retracted. They weren't the same officers so no connection.

About a minute ago or so he had heard the bell ring and was surprised that there had not been a knock on the study's door. He dismissed the notion of worry because it was probably just one of the boys' friends. He hadn't heard much of a conversation though, so he poked his head out into the hall.

He saw Kailey conversing with an older looking man at the door. Preparing to see who that man was, he's pretty suspicious lingering in the doorway. Taking a step toward the talking pair in the hallway, he was tugged by an arm from his wife who saw him.

"Honey, can you please set the table."

"Certainly," Mr. Hardy replied. If anything is going on I can hear it from the kitchen, he thought.

"I heard that he's her father's associate, so it's fine Fenton," Mrs. Hardy said, soothing her husband's worries a little bit.

While going to grab some forks, Mr. Hardy glanced up down the hall and locked eyes with his oldest son and bid him over. Frank grabbed Joe's collar and dragged him to the kitchen.

"Dad," Joe pleaded, "Something's wrong. We can't just leave her with him, in our house. We don't even know who he is."

"Your mother said he's an associate of her father."

"Dad, why is he still outside. I understand a minute or two, but five minutes seems a bit extensive and Kailey has to be freezing."

Mr. Hardy paused before saying anything. It was odd.

"Actually I have two and it may take me a while to gather my stuff. I have all my work spread across the table and in the room upstairs," Kailey told Brandon nonchalantly as she slyly took a step back. "You see I went to the store and also don't have everything in my bag. I put my clothes in the guest room closet and drawers because I thought I was staying here a lot longer. You know I thought, why not get comfortable."

"That's fine, though I wait in the car. I wouldn't want to intrude on the Hardy's anymore on your father's account. Missing the plane wouldn't be good."

"Okay, well, I'll get the boys to help me, then I'll be done in a jiffy," Kailey suggested and began to turn around. But Brandon's arm latched on to hers and broke her eye connection with the Hardy men gathered at the brink of the kitchen at the end of the hall.

He had stepped in the house, unwelcome. "I don't think that's necessary, why don't you just come with me now."

Fire in her eyes Kailey retorted, "Like hell I will," and ripped her arm from his grasp and deflected his other hand that reached out to get a grip on her fleeting body.

She turned to the approaching Hardys, but stopped dead when there was a click behind her. It was a deafening sound. It sent a shiver down her spine. Kailey looked up to see pure terror in the boys' faces and they were focused behind her. Focused on the gun the long-associate of her father had trained on her.


	16. Strategy

Chapter 16

Turn around or not to turn around is the question. Kailey looked at the brothers, then Mr. Hardy. Where is the Mrs.? Oh she's in the kitchen, but she couldn't be seen from the hallway.

Joe looked at Frank, the steady man in a situation such as this. Frank took a quick look at his father. Fenton looked at his wife dialing the phone in the kitchen then back at his son. The man with the gun, Brandon, had his eyes purely fixated on the young girl in front of him, anticipating her movements.

Strategy, the best ever was needed at that particular moment. One wrong move could turn a civil situation disastrous.

Frank analyzed the situation. His mother was safe. Could he fly faster than the bullet and knock Kailey down. Then his father or brother would tackle the wacko and ask questions later. The only one seemingly in real danger was Kailey. Frank glanced a second time at his father who was observing the man and trying to get Kailey's read on the situation. He noticed she was a bit of an impulsive person and not completely uncomfortable in a perilous situation. Is that good or bad?

Joe's heart was pumping faster, adrenaline needed to be reserved, at this moment he had to remain calm. There was no easy way to get Kailey out of harms' way before that gun went off. His mom really wouldn't appreciate a bullet being embedded in her nicely wallpapered hallway. Anyways, Joe tried to lock eyes with Kailey whose eyes darted between the Hardy men.

Soon enough he was looking into a girl taking in the situation, not at all panicking. She had the look of concentration on her face, like she was trying to solve a puzzle. Before Joe could interpret more of her facial features the middle-aged man spoke.

"Kailey, just turn around and come with me. I didn't want to have to do this, but you just weren't listening to my suggestions before."

Frank thought that the man was more concerned with her being intact. So shooting anything vital would be out of order, maybe actually hitting her in general would be futile. He'd have to then take care of her and couldn't travel far under the radar. Not like he's going to get out of here that easily.

Joe noticed that Kailey was deciding whether or not to answer and was looking past him to his father. Not wanting to draw attention to their silent conversation, Joe looked at his brother. His face seemed to say that he was forming a plan. Joe chose to keep a watch for the police and Kailey's quick decision.

Brandon spoke again, "Come on. I don't want to hurt you or them, but if you don't listen to me I might have to."

Let's see how Kailey responds, thought Frank, he's really laying it on thick.

Kailey took a deep breath and stared at Mr. Hardy before she said, "Okay," and began to turn around.

Brandon was still directly at the door. He had one hand with the gun directed at Kailey, while the other was behind him, groping for the doorknob. Kailey was halfway in between. The gun barely wavered as she finally turned her back completely to the Hardy family.

"Okay what?" Brandon inquired.

"Okay I'll come with you."

Brandon nodded and said, "Good choice. Now come on, we're wasting time."

"Hold on, now unless you want me to freeze to death before we get to wherever we're going, I need to put on my shoes and coat."

"Okay, well then put them on," the man added, "But you have to stay in my line of sight and I'm remaining right here. Freezing wouldn't help my cause."

"Right," Kailey agreed and took a tentative step forward. "My coat and boots are right over there, on the back of the chair, you see?"

"Yes, proceed," Brandon ordered.

The gun is still on her, but he had admitted to not wanting her in a bad condition. It's now or never, right? Frank put his foot forward, getting the attention of the gunman.

"Don't any of you think about doing anything heroic," Brandon declared, waving the gun around to emphasize his point. "Stay right there, I'm not afraid to use my weapon."

The Hardys nodded their heads in acknowledgement. Kailey quickly brought the boots and coat into the hallway and began dressing in layers.

Not thinking anything of it she simultaneously took her phone out of her pocket so she could sit comfortably on the ground. It balanced vicariously at the edge of the table holding the home phone.

"Come on," Brandon urged Kailey, as she fumbled zipping up the boots and fixing the coat. Instinctively she reached for the phone, but he let out a screechy scream of, "NO! Leave it! Let's go!"

As Kailey got about an arms-length away and Brandon had lowered the weapon significantly, there was the blaring of a cell phone. It was the slight distraction that was needed.

Many things occurred at once. Kailey approached Brandon while he looked at the teetering and falling cellular device. It only took an instant to knock the gun out of his hands. Then she let punches rip. She received only a few that were mostly to the stomach, leading her to buckle over to catch her breath.

At that time Frank pulled her off to the side as Joe gave him a good punch in the jaw, while Mr. Hardy grabbed the gun. He took charge, clicking the safety.

"Stop," Fenton demanded. Joe backed away, next to Frank and Kailey. Brandon lifted his hands above his head in surrender and remained back against the front door. Quickly glancing at the teens, he stayed focus on the criminal, and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yes" was the mutual response.

Looking at the man he directed his next question, "Who are you?"

"I'm a friend of her father.." Brandon began.

Kailey cut him off, "You're no friend of his. You're a traitor. And have been for a while."

The volatile man made a slight movement insinuating advancing on the family. Mr. Hardy wasn't a fool and didn't want anything to happen under his roof, so he put his foot down.

It was a large step that closed the once wide space between the detective and the perpetrator. The gun barely wavered, aimed at the criminal's heart. There was a bulge in the man's overcoat, Fenton noticed. He needed to decide the best way to approach the situation without letting his guard down or getting his sons in the line of fire. If one of them went to pat that down, they could very well be held as hostage. But how long could this trapped and cornered game play out?

Brandon saw Fenton's glance at his disproportioned figure. He's going to get defensive, he thought and his aim probably isn't a force to be reckoned with.

The shrill of police sirens outside broke the intensity building in the hallway of the Hardy house.

Two things happened at once. Brandon turned around and reached into the folds of his coat. Mr. Hardy shouted no and took another step forward, directly behind the criminal. As the man tried to face Fenton, Mr. Hardy forgot he had a gun and laid a punch in his gut.

Frank and Joe stepped defensively in front of Kailey towards their father who shouted, "Stay back!" They did as they were told.

Weapons forgotten, the two grown men engaged in a fast-paced fist fight. Mr. Hardy seemed as though he was prevailing, but then Brandon kicked his kneecap, causing it to bend in an awkward position. Fenton fell to the ground. Brandon took this opportunity and dove for the gun.

Seeing the perp reach for the armed weapon, most likely ready to aim at the kids, Fenton regained his fighting composure and sprang towards the gun with a small burst of energy.

Both men had a hand on the gun. It waved around freely. It seemed more than likely someone was going to shoot an eye out, so the teens ducked down.

Outside the police could be heard on the megaphone, "Please come out with your hands up Mr. Mackrel. We will come get you."

"Over my dead body," Brandon muttered, finally slipping Mr. Hardy's grasp off the fully loaded weapon.

He held it firmly in his hand and grinned.

In the next few moments, time stopped as a shot was fired and Mrs. Hardy screamed bloody murder.

**A/N:** Thanks for the review and favorite! Please review this chapter! It's almost done :( I still don't own the Hardys (I can't remember if i've added that lately). I hope you enjoyed the way this chapter was written.


	17. Relief

Thank you so much for the reviews! I couldn't keep you in suspense too long, so I hope you enjoy this chapter. I still haven't gotten ownership of the Hardy franachise.

Chapter 17

Frank, Joe, and Kailey had jumped up at Mrs. Hardy's voice to see Brandon receive a bullet in the shoulder and collapse on top of Mr. Hardy.

Laura wasted no time running over to check on her husband who eased the injured criminal off him. "Oh my god Fenton, I thought Sam was going to hit you!"

The boys turned to face the kitchen as they approached their father. Sam Radley was approaching them with the gun still out as a precaution. He couldn't see where the perp's weapon had landed.

Brandon moaned and rolled away from Mr. Hardy, in the direction of the teens. Sam reprimanded the man, "Oh no you don't!" and took two quick steps to remove the gun out of his reach.

The police took the combo of a gun firing and a scream as their cue to enter the Hardy residence. An officer Cooper was the first to come in and see Sam pointing a gun at a man on the ground with oozing blood from his left shoulder. Sheldon Cooper noticed another weapon just out of his reach. "Sam I've got him," he said approaching the injured man.

"Dad are you okay?" Frank asked. The criminal was now being read his rights and the Hardy clan was gathered on the floor in the hallway waiting on the ambulance.

Someone decided that Fenton needed the stretcher more than the criminal, so he was going to be driven in the police car. Kailey was being questioned by Officer Cooper and Con Riley was taking over the crime scene.

"Sam where did you come from?" Con asked. He figured that interviewing them all at once would be simpler and he'd get any information about this man having accomplices. Also, he didn't think the boys or his wife were going to leave his side so soon.

Laura spoke up, "You see Con that after I contacted the police, I rang him over. I wasn't sure what he was doing and I figured he could be a big help."

Sam smiled. He was grateful that woman called him because he didn't even want to think about what would have happened if he hadn't been there. "After I got Laura's frantic call, I sped over here. I was actually just on my way home. The lights were on in the front, so I went around back. I thought she may have mentioned something about being in the kitchen. I came through the back and assessed the situation."

Con broke in, "What was going on?"

"Well Fenton had just gotten control of the situation. I didn't want to throw him off by jumping in. If I had just stepped in Fenton you'd probably be distracted and one second was all that guy needed to make a move. I assumed he had a weapon on him from the bulge in his jacket."

"Yeah, I think we got that. Continue."

"Fenton noticed it too," Sam paused as he nodded in agreement. "I waited for the opportune moment to take the guy out if necessary, only if Fenton didn't have the advantage. Once Fenton fell as the man brutally hurt his knee, the man was dangerous. At least the kids were safe, so I took out my weapon and discharged it when I thought he was going to shoot it. That's about it."

"Thanks Sam. Now, do any of you know what he wanted or if he was working with anyone?"

"Kailey," Joe replied. Nothing had really been explained since the police can to do their work, following protocol to the tee. He and his brother gathered with their parents in the hall. Kailey was escorted into questioning in the study. Sam remained by his partner for support.

Con looked at the exhausted family. "What do you mean by that?"

Frank spoke up, "Well, you see he was here for her. I think she may have an idea who he's working for. Kailey had said that he was an old associate of her father."

"Really? Any reason he'd suddenly go a-wall?"

"Well, he actually wanted to kidnap me and probably meet up with my father's ex-girlfriend. She's got this crazy revenge thing going on," Kailey answered. Her voice made them nervous. That statement was said extremely matter-of-fact and it wasn't expected.

"Why do you say that?" Con asked, intrigued.

"I just got off the phone with my father and he had some rather disturbing news. You know that woman, Elena Richardson, well she's no longer in captivity."

Frank was confused, "Wait.. what? How can that be? It's not like they'd let her off?"

"My dad said they were transferring her to a state facility, and she never made it there. Also, that's why my phone went off earlier, he wanted to warn me."

"How do you know he was planning on meeting up with this woman?" Sam asked. Con's presence as a police officer was completely forgotten. The detectives were taking control of the conversation.

"Actually I've kind of had my eye on him for a while. You know that uncomfortable feeling you get around some people? Well he was giving off this weird vibe and has acted oddly toward my father lately."

"In what way?" Fenton asked. He was intrigued. How did this girl know? There was definitely something different about her. What it was exactly Fenton had no idea.

"It's not necessarily what he has done, but what he hasn't. Within the last two years, he has not been attending the company functions regularly. The absence wasn't noticeable as these festivities are packed with people, but he also wasn't coming around our house any more. My dad would mention off-hand that Brandon scarcely talked to him, he was always busy."

Con asked, "So why would that mean anything?"

Kailey looked at Mr. Hardy. He knew the story, and she didn't feel comfortable letting the entire police squad privy to the intimate details of the kidnapping. She was trying to forget it.

Fenton noticed her distress at answering this question and glanced at his wife. She always knew how to handle these situations.

"Well Con," Frank began.

"Frank let me dear," Mrs. Hardy interrupted her eldest. "She has just come to that conclusion based on previous experiences which aren't relevant to your case. You captured him, she is safe here. She was questioned and you got the general gist of the story from us. I think that's all you need. Anymore specific questions can wait until tomorrow. This has been one heck of a night, so please just do some homework."

Con looked at Fenton who wasn't arguing and agreed wholeheartedly with his wife's choice of words.

The entrance of the emergency crew buried Con's burning concerns. Fenton was taken on a stretcher as his knee was complete knocked out of its socket. Laura, Frank, Joe, and Kailey jumped in the Hardy mobile and headed to the hospital.

Laura still volunteered there and was greeted warmly by the nurses and doctors she passed in the halls. The group remained in the plastic waiting chairs while Fenton was examined and chatted with the doctor.

Conversation between them mostly concerned banal topics such as time. Eventually, Kailey couldn't take it anymore and burst out the thought she had been thinking for the last hour or so since the incident. "I'm so sorry. This wouldn't have happened if I would have just left."

Mrs. Hardy broke out of her exhausted stupor and grabbed Kailey's hands. Looking deep into her eyes she told her, "It's not your fault. It could have been a lot worse. Thank goodness that you did delay leaving with that terrifying man. Something much worse could have happened to you."

"It's not your fault K," Joe said, patting her on the shoulder, trying to comfort her. "Crazies always seem to turn up at our doorstep, or more likely we go out searching for them. It's nothing we can't handle. Dad'll be up and back at it in no time."

"Yeah, this knucklehead is actually right for a change. Don't blame yourself, that's just stupid."

"MOM, did you hear what he just called me?" Joe whined.

"Yes."

Kailey and Frank burst out in laughter. Joe crossed his arms and continued to pout like a petulant child. Laura smiled and tried to get comfortable in her seat. The contagious atmosphere broke as a doctor approached them.

"Hardy?"

"Yes," said the three of them in sync.

"You can go see him now, he's right through that door," the doctor relayed and pointed to two doors down the hall.

"Thank you," Mrs. Hardy said before the doctor left and quickly got to her feet. "Let's go slowpokes."

Joe grinned at his mother, she always knew how to keep their spirits up. In about thirty seconds the Hardys were reunited. Mr. Hardy was relaxing on the bed with a brace on his knee.

"Hi honey, how are you doing?" Laura asked, coming over to his beside to comfort him.

"I'm fine. The doc put my knee back in place, gave me a brace and some pain killers. I can go home tonight."

"That's great dad!" Frank said.

"Yeah, she just ran to grab some crutches."

"Dad, you really think you can function crutches? How about a wheelchair? That seems like a more suitable accommodation for a man of your stature," Joe commented.

"What are you implying son? That I'm old?"

Joe's cheeks turned a light pink shade. Frank and Kailey covered their mouths, holding back their laughter.

Mrs. Hardy jumped in the conversation, "Ohh honey, of course not! I love you just way you are!" She planted a big one on him.

"Ewww! Get a room!" Joe teased. Frank rolled his eyes, his brother never knew when to stop. Fenton reached for a pillow to throw in his direction, but halted at the sight of the doctor at the door.

"Well, it's seems you're doing ten times better than I last saw you. You guys just need to keep him entertained for the next few weeks while he remains close to immobile," the doctor smiled and produced the crutches. "These are for you. I brought the paper work to check yourself out."

"Thank you so much doc."

"The pleasure is all mine. Now just let me know if you're feeling at all uncomfortable and if the pain doesn't extensively decrease within the next week," replied the doc and turned to whisper jokingly to Fenton, "Now's the perfect time to bring out all those i-owe-yous and promises."

"You bet I will."

"Good," the doctor smiled and continued, "Now keep that on. Only take it off when showering because it's not waterproof. Otherwise have a pleasant night and a better weekend."

"Thank you" chorused throughout the room as the doctor retreated.

After some slip-ups and ridiculous comments about lacking in coordination, Mr. Hardy was pooped and proceeded to fall right to sleep when he returned home. Soon enough the rest of the household went to sleep as well. Not a creature was stirring.

A/N: please review! Also, thanks to all those who favorited the story and put it on alert:)


	18. Goofy

Hey! It's been a while. I'm really super sorry. I just wanted these last few chapters perfect! I hope you enjoy it! No, I haven't gotten the rights for the Hardy Boys, it was only a dream:) It's a little bit shorter, but the next two are long!

**Chapter 18**

"LONG!" Joe Hardy complained to his brother as they entered their house after school. "This day has been so boring and I can't wait until tonight!"

"How did your test go?" Kailey asked from the couch. She and Mr. Hardy were just relaxing and watching T.V.

The boys shrugged off their winter attire and took places in the living room. Then Franks answered, "Well, I think that my exam went alright. I think I knew everything. The teacher sets it up with ten multiple choice then the rest of it is essay questions."

"Blah, blah, blah. Frank, she really doesn't want to hear the details of your HISTORY test. It's boring."

"Are you sure you're not just voicing your opinion and assuming that's her concern?" Frank asked.

"Ahhh, you got me!" Joe exclaimed, pretending to be stabbed in the chest and dramatically slumped over. Frank and Fenton just rolled their eyes. Kailey laughed, those boys never ceased to crack her up.

"Well, I guess since your dead you won't be needing any hot chocolate. Why don't the two alive teenagers join me in the kitchen," Mrs. Hardy said after watching the interaction in the front room.

Frank and Kailey stood up, holding their sides, they were laughing so much. Joe also began to rise but was stopped by his father holding up his crutch to block his path. "Why don't you so kindly get me some? I've always wanted a zombie servant son. They don't need to be fed, so in all I'd save a lot of money."

The cackles in the kitchen rose, while Joe's face turned a little pink. He didn't understand how everything seemed to backfire on him, especially when they were just innocent and regular gestures or comments. So Joe played along, "Yes sir," he said saluting his father and walked away saying, "your humble zombie son will return momentarily."

Mrs. Hardy smiled at her younger son's antics as he walked like Frankenstein into the kitchen, letting out moans and creaks every step. The others two kids were in fits of laughter at the table. Teenagers, what could she really do about them? "Here you go," she said handing a mug to him.

"Wait where's mine?" Joe asked with an incredulous look.

"It'll be ready when you get back. I can only warm up so much water in this pan," Laura replied.

"Ugh, okay," he dragged his feet to the family room and back.

"Thank you darling, now go take a seat and tell me about your day."

"I did NOT want to get up this morning.."

"That's for sure," Frank whispered to Kailey.

His brother rolled his eyes and continued, "And Frank knocked me off my bed and gave me like five minutes before we had to leave. The teachers spent all class shoving more information into our ears before finals. I don't want to look at notebook paper ever again."

"Well, I'm sure you learned a lot son," Mrs. Hardy replied as she also took a seat at the table. "How was your test Frank?"

"Overall I believe I did well."

"That's fantastic! I was worried when you didn't get that much time to prepare last night."

"I woke up plenty early this morning to go over notes. Also, the test wasn't until last period, so I spent most of the day studying when I wasn't completely immersed in the lectures."

"Oh," Kailey said before asking, "Why did you have a test right before finals?"

"We had to still do work over Thanksgiving and we have tests every two weeks, so we had to have a test today. We only need to prepare for the AP exam the rest of this semester."

"Don't worry you'll do fine," declared Joe. "You've been studying like crazy for this class all year."

"Thanks bro," Frank said patting him on the back as he got up to leave.

"No problem, that's what I'm here for, to give you support."

"And witty remarks," Kailey added.

Mrs. Hardy giggled. _Kailey was fitting in perfectly around here,_ she thought. The rest of the afternoon was spent with most of them in front of the TV, relaxing after a trying week.

A couple hours later the three teens found themselves at the infamous pizza parlor in Bayport.

"So life is never boring for you Hardys, is it?" Biff joked.

Frank, Kailey, and Joe had just taken their seats.

"No, not really," Joe answered, "But that's how we like it." He slapped his brother on the back, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, Joe you say that now, but if I recall you were complaining earlier, wasn't he Kailey?" Frank retorted.

"Yeah, but he's always complaining about something, isn't he?" Kailey remarked

"So true," Callie agreed, snuggling closer to Frank.

"Hey, now don't go ganging up on me," Joe said defensively.

"We'd _never_ do that," joked Chet. Joe just rolled his eyes at his friends.

About that time Tony came over to take their order.

"Aii! T—onyyyy! How ya doin'?"

"Yeah Tony can I have a pizza pie?"

Tony just rolled his eyes at his friends' antics, they would never cease to tease.

"Alright, alright, calm down. What kind of 'pizza pie' do you want?"

Biff took the initiative, "Can we have two medium pizzas, one everything and one pepperoni."

"Is that good for everyone?" Tony asked the six other teens.

Phil finally spoke up, "Yeah, just hurry up and fill in the order before these smart guys say anything else, and like change their mind."

There were a whole bunch of "heys" and both Chet and Biff gave him a punch on the shoulder, which led to more goofing off. Tony just walked away, shaking his head.

"So Kailey, what do you think of the Hardy life? Exciting? Terrifying? Ridiculous?" Biff asked in a story-telling tone.

Everyone looked at her, smiling at the enthusiasm with which directed the question. "Well, it wasn't exactly quite what I had expected to come up for a visit to one of my dad's old friend's family."

"I'll bet," said Callie, "those two really get into crazy shenanigans all the time."

Frank looked at his girlfriend, "What are you trying to say, you don't like us getting into all of that stuff?"

"Oooh" was had in an mocking and instigating manner by some of the guys.

"Well," Callie drew out. "I don't like the fact that I have no idea if you two are ever going to be okay with all the dangerous situations you get yourself into. It's a bit nerve racking and you as well as Joe treat it so nonchalantly."

Frank paused before replying, unsure if she was joking or seriously arguing. Sometimes he could never tell. "Sorry, next time before we get into something, I'll let you know! It's not like I exactly like being stuck with this dufus in precarious situations." He pointed at his brother.

"Hey! Now!" Joe replied, relieving the tension that had just grown between the couple.

"Seriously Joe, are you really the most graceful or think before going into certain situations?" Chet asked.

"Well, sometimes I do. At least I've gotten out alive," Joe defended himself, giving a half smile.

Wanting to keep the topic of conversation light, Kailey jumped in, "What kind of crazy situations are you guys referring to?"

"We'll be here all night," Phil commented, getting the whole table to laugh.

"Where to start?" Biff wondered.

"Well, there was this one time wasn't there?" Callie began. "Weren't we at a party at your barn Chet and Joe chased after someone he thought was breaking into his car?"

"OH Yeah!" Chet exclaimed.

"He got himself kidnapped, we drove all night like crazy trying to find him," Frank added.

"Yeah, didn't we eventually find him tied up in a cave after a few days or something?" Phil looked at his peers for acknowledgment.

"Yeah, it was pretty crazy."

"Whoa! So this happens on a regular basis?" Kailey asked extremely surprised that civilians would willingly jump in these kinds of situations.

"Kind of," Callie replied. "Not all of them are that bad, some cases they take are extremely interesting."

"Like what?"

"Well, there was this one case where there was this electronics genius who had all locks to his house hidden and…"

"Oh yeah," Joe interrupted, "Didn't he work for the FBI?"

"Yep, and he made this one device that could undo any security system," Frank added.

"Whoa, that's crazy!" Kailey stated.

"Yeah, you know what's even crazier, he made friends with this one guy, who turned out to be a criminal and stole it from him after he died."

"Intense," Kailey responded, "anything else?"

"There was this one case where these buffoons mistook Biff and I for Frank and Joe," Chet told her.

"Oh I remember that!" Biff responded. "Weren't we brought to an island or something, it was around your costume party, wasn't it Callie?"

"Yeah, I think so," Callie replied. "It was one of your earlier cases, wasn't it?"

"Yep," Frank agreed.

"The best part was getting recaptured after these two bozos came to spring us," Chet joked.

"Oh, come on Chester," Joe pleaded, "We got you two out of there eventually."

"With the help of the police, if I remember correctly," Biff added

"Man, oh man, were Iola and I worried about you guys!" Callie commented.

"Yeah I bet you were," Joe mentioned quietly.

The table was taken over by an awkward silence as the friends alternated glancing between Joe and Chet.

Kailey wasn't quite sure what to make of their odd behavior, but decided she'd need to break the ice. "I can't believe you guys do crazy stuff like that all the time! I can't believe your parents let you!"

"Aw, shucks, Kailey," Biff began, "What do you take us for?... Idiots? We tone down the story for them."

"Or the elaborate a little too much on it for us," Callie joked.

"Hey now, really?" Frank looked at his girlfriend. "That stuff really happens."

"Yeah, but I do think these fellows, Kailey, go a little overboard when describing my antics," Joe said with a small grin while leaning into the table.

"Oh! Come off it!" Chet commented.

"Yeah! You do ridiculous things all the time that we've seen with our own eyes. Don't believe him Kailey. Frank has told us real accounts of some of his lucky breaks, but that's all that they are," Phil added.

"What are you guys referring to? I'm the brains of the duo!" Joe said smirking at his brother.

Rolling his eyes at the loudness of his friend's table, Tony walked over with another waiter and the pizzas. "Anybody hungry?"

"Me! Me! Me!" shouted the teens, attacking the pies like seagulls.

Tony rolled his eyes and quickly shuffled away in embarrassment. At least they would quiet down for a little bit, he thought.

The rest of the conversation was jovial and last another thirty minutes. Then Phil got a text from his mom, urging him to drive home now, so that he'd be safe and wouldn't arrive home too late. Biff and Chet trickled out soon after. It was just the two detectives, Callie and Kailey.

"Bye Tony! I hope we didn't scare off all your customers tonight!" Callie said heading for the door.

"Nope, amazingly enough, people just started to block you guys out," Tony replied.

"Or the elderly folk just removed their hearing aids," Kailey remarked, causing the other teens to break out into laughter.

"True that!" Joe managed to get out.

"You fit in just fine!" Tony exclaimed.

"Thanks!" Kailey replied.

"Alright let's go!" Frank said looking at his watch. They didn't need to worry their parents anymore this week.

The four of them walked out with no problems getting into their respective vehicles and travelled home.

As it was late, Mr. and Mrs. Hardy just said "good night" and wished them a good night's sleep. Exhaustion seemed to overwhelm the three teens as their heads hit the pillows. There was nothing worrying them because they had the weekend ahead of them.

**A/N:** Please review! Two more chapters! Which will be up shortly! Can you think of which stories am I referring to?


	19. Investigating

Hey Everybody! I'm finally wrapping up this Hardy tale. I hope you've enjoyed it so far! I still don't own the characters in the Hardy household or their friends.

**Chapter 19**

"Shhh!", "Stop", "Come on", "Hurry up!" and stifled giggles were heard when Mrs. Hardy entered the second floor landing. What on earth could be going on now, she wondered, consciously making her footsteps quieter as she approached her sons rooms. The door to Frank's room was wide-open and it was empty, while Joe's was only open a sliver.

Peeking in she shook her head, what has gotten into her cautious son? Was he really leaning over his little brother, tickling him with a feather? Laura didn't know what to make of that girl who was putting another glop of shaving cream on her son's open hand. She seemed so young and innocent at the beginning of the week. Now, Mrs. Hardy saw her in a completely different light. She was young, but had a past that she wasn't too fond of speaking of, much like her younger son, something traumatic had happened. Being goofy was her only option of feeling comfortable in certain situations.

Train of thought was interrupted by the blond-haired boy awakening. "Ahh! Ohhh! Frank I'm gonna get you for this!" Joe cursed the air after sitting up and noticing the shaving cream everywhere. When he tried to get up he failed because he was extremely wrapped up in the covers.

This made Frank and Kailey stop and laugh even harder at the spectacle before them. Then the angry teen rose up, untangled from the gnarly mess he referred to as his bed. The two instigators ran through the bathroom and Frank's room with the blond-haired boy hot on their trail.

"Boys!" Mrs. Hardy tried with no avail as the teens continued downstairs.

Mr. Hardy looked up from his cup of coffee and newspaper as Frank and Kailey flew into the kitchen in fits of laughter. The teens came to an abrupt halt as they saw his questioning glance.

Frank began, "Dad…" but was cut off by thundering steps and an "ahh!" The two teens moved behind Mr. Hardy.

Joe came in the kitchen highly infuriated. His shirt was ruffled and covered with shaving cream periodically topping off his disheveled look with distinctly tousled hair. "YOU are going to GET IT!"

Mr. Hardy waved his paper up in between the teens. He wasn't getting up off the chair to stop his younger son from lunging at the older one, but that curt movement froze both of them.

"Now, WHAT on God's green earth happened?" Fenton asked glaring intently at the teens.

No one spoke at first. They just looked at each other, daring the other to talk. Then Kailey braved it. "Well, you see Mr. Hardy," she said stepping from behind Frank between the eagerly poised brothers. "It was all my fault. I was joking around with Frank this morning and we kind of teased about it yesterday, but then we both chose to pull a prank on Joe."

Fenton took in the volunteered testimony of the house guest and looked at his sons for further statements concerning the unusual actions this morning. At this moment his lovely wife walked in, "Is the coast clear?"

"Well honey, I'm not too sure about that. You see that blond boy in front of you?" Mr. Hardy replied smirking.

"Why yes I do sweetheart. But I don't understand, what are you sure about? It seems this boy has stopped yelling."

"Well yes, but it appears that there's more to the story that the brown-haired boy over there has yet to disclose. Depending on what he has to say and the reaction of the blonde one, then I'll be able to gauge whether or not the coast is clear."

"Ohh, I understand now. I'll just take a seat right next to you so I can hear it for myself," Mrs. Hardy replied walking across the kitchen and taking a seat to see all three teens.

"Yeah, and that's when Frank told them our evil plot and Joe almost bulldozed him over. I think he forgot I was there and ran me into the counter. He apologized and the boys went upstairs to wash up. We did hear some pounding a little bit ago, but hey, they have to work out their differences some way," Kailey finished telling Callie an hour in a half later in the Hardy's living room.

"Oh, boys, what are we gonna do with them?" Callie responded and glanced at her watch for the fifth time.

"I'll tell them we're leaving, then they'll surely come down," Kailey told her. "FRANK! Your girlfriend and I are going to the mall. I guess we'll just see you later," she shouted at the foot of the stairs.

A few moments later there was pounding on the stairs and the Hardy brothers entered the room. "See what I mean," Kailey added quietly.

Callie just smiled as Frank walked over and gave her a hug.

"So it's just going to be you girls?" Joe wondered aloud.

"Yep! No boys! Though I'm sure you will be dreadfully missed at the mall. Shopping with us fellow ladies," Callie remarked, getting a chuckle from Frank and Kailey.

"Actually we're fine. You girls go spend time together, just not with any boys. You see my brother wouldn't like that," Joe continued.

"That won't be a problem," Kailey replied, "Come on let's go!"

The girls headed out, leaving the Hardy boys to fight over the remote control for the TV. A few minutes later they heard, "Boys! Come here." They each begrudgingly left the comfort of the couch on a Saturday afternoon and joined their father in his office.

"What's up?" Frank asked.

"Does mom know you're working?" Joe instigated.

Fenton just threw his youngest a look. "That's none of your business. BUT better getting stuff done sooner than later, right?" Frank and Joe nodded in agreement both mimicking smirks.

"Okay well, I asked both of you in here because we, I mean, the police as well as Sam and I need some help looking at some of this information we've gathered. Did you happen to notice anything peculiar about the set up they had going on? If you do remember something write it here," Mr. Hardy handed them a notepad. "Alright. Look at this and let me know."

"Okay," they both said as they got up to leave with the files.

"Wait," the boys turned around to face their exhausted looking father, "Don't forget to let me know before your mother walks through that door. She wants me to take off the whole weekend. I think yesterday was enough. Sam can't do this alone."

"No problem dad, I've got your back!" Joe replied. "But I don't know about this one, he's tricky."

"OH, come on Joe," Frank whined, punching him in the shoulder. "Don't worry dad I got you!"

Fenton just shook his head as the boys left to look over the various files.

"Dad," Frank said not too long after sifting through the notes, and entered into the messy office.

"Yes, what is it?" Fenton asked, eager to learn something new.

"Well, you gave Joe and I all the info that wasn't deleted from the computer. All the records of the people that we blackmailed for this and that, but we couldn't find any in the police reports except that one you and Sam had found," Frank paused. "Also, I have a question did you or mom ever receive a threat or ransom? They have it checked off that they had accomplished step two with our family, which was the warning note after the kids were kidnapped."

"Yeah, it was given to evidence asap."

"Okay, so what exactly do you want?"

"Son, we have an idea of what they are doing, but are waiting for their confession. There are only general theories to go on. We have no idea how far this organization branches out. We don't know if they kidnapped you for ransom from us because they thought we could pay a lot without alerting the police, which would be ridiculous. Maybe they were threatening with more? Something doesn't make sense."

"OH," Frank mumbled, looking down at his notes. He slowly retreated, leaving his exhausted father in his mountains of folders.

About ten minutes later the doorbell rings and Joe volunteers to answer it. "Hey Sam! How ya doing?"

"Fine thanks. Where's your father? In his study?" Sam said quickly, eager to get inside the warm house. Joe just nodded and the guest shed his winter attire before getting reacquainted with his partner.

"Hey Fenton!" Sam said, taking a seat in one of the plush chairs across from his dedicated partner.

"Hey yourself! What news do you have?" Fenton asked, extremely desperate for another lead.

"Well," he looked at the boys in the doorway, then back at his partner who nodded his head. "I did some digging into the family and was extremely surprised that you hadn't said anything before."

Fenton didn't want to go into detail about Kailey's father or history. He wanted to close the ring of kidnappers and blackmailers. "What about the other case?"

"I wanted to let you know that I talked to the man I shot," Sam replied quickly. Fenton looked at his long-time partner with disbelief. "Okay, well actually Con talked to him, but whatever. He admitted to being in cahoots with that woman Elena. He felt extremely guilty, especially betraying one of his friends. I guess I can understand why Kailey made that assumption. Anyways, there's some good news from some of guys we picked up at the mansion."

"What? Did that Warren talk?" Frank asked intrigued, he had not seemed like an easily persuaded or intimidated man.

"No, actually the really weak guy. Um, Henry, I think his name was. He started to spill his guts."

"I didn't know he was one of the guys you arrested," Joe said.

"Yeah, there were quite a few. We actually found him in a car a little ways down the road. It had stalled," Sam told the Hardy men.

"That's extremely lucky," Fenton acknowledged, his mood lightening a little bit.

"Yeah, we know! It's worked out great and he told us about this gathering that's happening tonight. He had overheard the guys talk about it the other day. It was all hush hush, he was kept out of the loop. We learned that Henry was only kept around for technological needs and because he's Warren's cousin."

"That's interesting. I haven't been able to find anyone else related to Warren or acting extremely out of character on the police force except that one Officer Alan that was being pretty brutal when talking to kids the other day," Mr. Hardy relayed to the crowd in his cramped office.

"Has anyone found him or any trace of him?" Frank asked.

"Nope, he has dropped off the local grid, thought the police are widening their search. For me it's over, they'll keep me in the loop or I hope Con will. I think he was just glad you weren't there badgering him."

Fenton smiled and replied, "Yeah, he really can't stand it especially when it had something to do with Frank or Joe. I would be by his side, but this time he'd have no problem calling Laura and ordering me to rest at home."

"Yeah, I can definitely see Con pulling a stunt like that," Sam remarked. "I'm going to try and get together with the level-headed cop that interrogated us. Do you recall his name?"

Fenton closed his eyes and sat back in his chair, trying to picture the young man. "Officer Farnell?"

"What ever happened to the number the old woman took from the man at the door? Did you find it and look it up?"

"No, actually I forgot about that. Thanks Joe, maybe I'll go look into that before heading to the meeting tonight."

"No problem, Sam, but I have one more thing that has been annoying me."

"Yes, Joe?" Sam asked slowly standing up, stretching his old-rickety limbs.

"How did the police know that Brandon guy's name? I thought that was so weird they announced it before they came in."

Sam laughed, "Well the police was contacted by the Texas police chief. That's why Kailey's dad had to get off the phone, or at least that's what he told her because the chief was calling him with info about Elena on the run and Brandon contacting her at the jail."

"Oh," Joe said, racking his brain for any more questions before being drowned in more papers from the kidnappers.

"If that's it, then I'll head out. I just wanted to give you an update. If you think of anything or have any burning questions, feel free to give me a ring," Sam said before making his way to the front door and back out into the cold.

The Hardy boys sighed as they turned to leave.

"Wait boys," Fenton called. "What's for lunch in this house? I think we deserve a quick break."

"I'll check it out!" Frank said, glad his father was softening up.

"Do you need any help?" Joe ventured, poking his head in the office, watching his dad trying to get out of the chair and into the crutches.

Mr. Hardy smiled at his youngest, "That would be wonderful son."

Eventually the three Hardys were around the kitchen table, enjoying Grilled Cheese by Joe and chips Frank grabbed from the cupboard. He chose to read and play with his computer through the years, while his brother happily helped his mother with meals, it had finally paid off.

Soon enough each resumed their researching spots.

"Frank?"

"Yeah, Joe?" his brother returned, not bothering to look up from the papers he was reading.

"Have you noticed any similarities between the families that were chosen?"

Frank stopped what he was doing and looked at his notes. Comparing the families he had gone through extensively, he asked Joe, "What did you find? There aren't any similarities between my families. Some are from this type of background. They are all different races and different number of family members."

"Well, I've noticed they are all in positions or must have some sort of feelings to trust the letter, right? Not going to the police about a kidnapping is extremely serious."

Giving him all his attention, "So what are you saying? Each family told someone or someone found out that these scared views were held and that's why they were chosen?"

"Yeah, kinda," Joe replied.

"Let's see what dad thinks," Frank suggested. The brothers moved to the study and explained the thought.

"So you want me to widen the search to see what all these people have in common?" Mr. Hardy wondered after gaining this new insight.

"Yes. It's not really working on paper," Joe replied.

"Okay," Fenton agreed. The next few minutes he played around on the computer and then finally let Frank help. Nothing was really gained. "How about we ask Sam?" he suggested, drained from the frustrating day.

"Sounds good dad," Frank told him. The afternoon continued to be filled with folders after folders while their mother volunteered at the hospital, her usual shift.

A few hours later, Mrs. Hardy returned to find her husband asleep on the couch with Joe flipping through the T.V. channels. Frank was at the table, constantly flipping back and forth between papers and folders spread across the table.

"Anything honey?" she asked her eldest, who was surely not willing to give up.

"Nope, not really much," he replied defeated.

"Well, you should look at your school stuff now. I don't want you cramming tomorrow like your brother. You don't need to be stressed out, you already had a crazy week," Laura advised her son.

Frank looked up at her concerned face. "Okay I will mom," he said with a smile and gathered up everything and replaced it in his father's study.

Returning from shopping, Kailey had a few bags that she just threw down while she wrestled off her boots and gloves, eager to get inside the warm Hardy home. The boys were focused on the TV and Mrs. Hardy was in the kitchen.

"Hey Mrs. H, so you need any help?"

"No, I'm actually almost done sweetie. How was shopping?"

"It was really fun. Callie and Lauren are nice."

"Find anything good?" Mrs. Hardy wondered.

"Just a sweater, scarf, and some boots."

"That's great. Yeah, I wonder though if I'll be going home soon, and all this will be a waste," Kailey replied, peeking over her shoulder at the stove.

"I'm sure you'll get use out of them yet!"

"I hope so!" Kailey said as she left the kitchen and put her bags in her room.

Hearing their house guest return, the boys expected her to acknowledge their presence or at least joining them soon, but since neither occurred, Joe decided to go see where she might be.

Joe knocked on the half open guest bedroom door.

"Come in!" Kaileys says, not looking up from her computer. She's sitting on the bed immersed in its contents. Joe smiled at her dedication and plops down at the end of the bed.

"What cha doin?" he asked.

"Nothing too exciting, just checking out Facebook," she replies, looking up at him.

"Nice," Joe continues, "I can't believe you didn't even come in to say 'hi' to us!"

"Oh come on, you were pretty preoccupied with American Pickers," Kailey told him, smirking. "Also, I had already seen that one and I wanted to see if your mom needed any help in the kitchen. Since she didn't, I came up here to plug into the digital world and put away my new clothes."

"Oh, well I guess that's a viable excuse."

"You bet it is Joseph Hardy! I can't spend all my attention on you or else people will start assuming things about us."

"Really? You think my family is a bunch of gossipers?"

"Not necessarily everyone, probably just your brother," Kailey said grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, he definitely is! His knitting club meets on Tuesdays, though he tells everyone it's computer club," Joe joked.

"Ha, yeah, the quiet ones you can never trust."

"You've got that right!"

"So, putting silly things aside, did the amazing Hardy detectives learn anything today?"

"Well, let's see.." Joe detailed everything went on during the afternoon. By the time he finished, Mrs. Hardy was calling them all to dinner.

Dinner was a simple affair. Oven-baked crispy chicken with sweet potatoes and peas filled everyone's plates, but not for long. All the food was ceremoniously thanked for its presence and shoved down the group's throats, leaving very small small talk.

Eventually all disperse after plates are cleared and glasses are empty. So that leaves the family spread through the house about an hour in a half or so later.

Frank is residing in Mr. Hardy's study. Joe and his parents are in the front room talking.

The doorbell rings. Kailey says from upstairs, "I'm not getting that. Remember what happened last time I did?"

Joe jumps in, "I will! Dad don't move." He rushes to the front door and looks through peephole, then looks at his father, "Were you expecting anyone?"

"No. You never know who it may be just answer it. It's cold outside."

"Okay, Okay," Joe mumbled as he unlocked the door. "Hello! Who might you be?" he greeted the stranger enthusiastically.

"I'm here for Kailey," the large, well-dressed, older man stated

**A/N:** Please review! One more chapter!


	20. Finished

Last Chapter! Thank you so much to all those who have reviewed! I hope you enjoy this!

**Chapter 20**

"Who are you exactly?" Joe asked with a more serious tone.

"I'm her father," the man stated matter-of-factly.

"OH," Joe said and gave him a once over. "Just one sec!" He closed the door a little bit and walked toward the front room calling his father. Frank stopped him right after he turned away from the door.

"Who is it?"

"Kailey's father," Joe replied skeptical.

"Oh, really," Frank replied, peeking over his brother's shoulder to get a look at the man.

"What is it?" Fenton asked in the doorway. He had heard Joe's call and came to see why he hadn't come in the room.

"Kailey's dad's at the door."

"Hmm," Fenton mumbled and approached the door. Getting closer, a grin broke across his face and he stopped and turned towards his sons. "Now why doesn't one of you go open the door for the poor man standing in the cold?"

Frank hurriedly let the large man in. He stepped inside and began to take of his winter attire. In a booming voice he addressed the Hardys, "Well, Hello Fenton, haven't seen you in a while! Now, Frank and Joe, it has been an extremely long time, you're men!"

Frank and Joe moved off to the side as the older men greeted each other. Laura entered the pretty crowded hallway just as there was a patter on the steps. Kailey flung around the corner and ran to her father. The raw emotion of the hug was extreme, but short-lived.

"Are you alright?" he pulled her away so they were at eye level with his hands on her shoulders.

"Now I am," she replied with a big ol'grin across her face and gave her father another quick embrace.

"Would you like something to drink sir?" Mrs. Hardy asked as the father and daughter broke away.

"Yes please, that would be lovely Laura," he replied, following the group into the kitchen.

They were cramped, but comfortable in the kitchen. Kailey's father had just told them how everything went down over at his end and how he just had to come see how she was getting along so far away. He couldn't honestly believe he was betrayed by his best and closest friend.

"What are the police doing about Elena?" Frank asked, extremely curious about their next move.

"Well from the very little I was told, I got the gist they were keeping a lookout for her, but have no leads that I know of," he happily replied to the eldest Hardy boy.

"Basically they're just sitting around, waiting for her to mess up?" Joe ventured.

"Pretty much," the older man agreed. "Fenton these are two wonderful detectives you've brought up! You'll be outta a job soon, they'll be taking all your business."

"Ah, good friend, thanks, but I hope they graduate college first before following exactly in their father's footsteps," Fenton jumped in and looked gratefully at his wife.

"These boys have a lot to do before that," Laura added.

"Yeah, like passing Pre-Calc," Joe told the adults, getting a good laugh from everyone.

Mr. Hardy looked at the time on the stove then at his old friend. "Can we have a word in my office?" he asked.

"Sure," the large man replied and helped Fenton to his study.

"Let's clean up," Mrs. Hardy announced after the men left the realm of the kitchen.

The boys and Kailey happily put away their cups and wiped the counter from the various cookie crumbs.

Fenton and her father talk in his office, then he gets a phone call that has to be taken alone.

Sam starts off, "Fenton, one of them finally cracked. We're going to round up the rest of the gang!"

Fenton smiled, "That's good Sam, that's really good!"

"Yeah, I know partner. Well, I just figured I'd let you know the good news. Right now I haveta go help out these knucklehead policemen," Sam replied.

"Go gett'm!" Mr. Hardy told him before hanging up.

Yawns were going around the group when Fenton came from the study. All were sitting around the TV in the front room. He announced, "Well, they think they've got them cornered. Sam will tell me more tomorrow!"

"Really?" Frank popped up.

"That's great news dad!" Joe added.

"That's wonderful dear," Mrs. Hardy agreed, "But I do believe you should all go to sleep, it's pretty late."

"You know they're tired if there's no hassle," Kailey's father remarked as the teens slowly got up to leave the room.

"Hey bud, I'll see you tomorrow. I've got a hotel already planned out with my luggage," he looked at the family. "Laura, don't take it personally, I just didn't think there'd be enough room in this house."

"Right you are," she replied.

Kailey gave him a hug and the Hardys shook his hand, then the large man left. Everyone trudged to their respective beds and fell asleep eventually.

Jovial laughter was heard Sunday morning as Joe trudges down the stairs_. Something must be extremely hilarious _he thought, recognizing his brother's obnoxious laugh from the crowd. Honestly he was tired and not completely in the mood for anything cheerful.

"No way!" said a young girl's voice, filled with laughter.

"Yeah these two knuckleheads decided to goof off."

"Man oh man Fenton, your sons sound like a handful."

"You've got that right, but that's saying something coming from you with five of them."

Joe looked at the clock in the kitchen, it was 10:30, mid-morning.

"Oh hello sweetie, what would you like?" Mrs. Hardy asked, noticing the presence of her youngest.

"Just some orange juice for now, I'm still trying to wake up," Joe replied.

"Sure, just take a seat by your brother after grabbing some cereal," Laura directed him.

"Hey sleepy head," Fenton greeted the blond-haired boy.

"Mornin' everyone!" Joe said to Fenton, Kailey, her father, and Frank all sitting around the table. They each replied in their own fashion, moving around to make room for him.

"Get a good rest?" Laura asked, handing him his drink.

"Yep! So what were you guys laughing about?" he asked.

"OH I was just telling them about you and Frank getting into trouble when you were younger," Mr. Hardy explained.

_Great,_ Joe thought, _he embarrassed us in front of the guests. I doubt Frank could have come up with a witty remark to rebuke whatever tale dad decided to tell. _He decided to shove cereal in his mouth instead of replying, Joe wasn't nearly awake enough to hold a substantial conversation he needed fuel. He glanced at the others_. Frank looked as though he had also just rolled out of bed, but everyone else seemed dressed and ready to embrace the day. Maybe they missed the memo_, he thought sarcastically.

"Anything new about the case?" Frank asked his father. He had finished his breakfast and was eager to know more about went down the previous night.

"Well, Sam sent me a lengthy email about all the people they captured last night, including the cop. I believe it's officer Alan that was giving you a hard time in interrogation. The number the man gave Mrs. Figg was a pay by minutes cell and part of the confiscated items from the raid last night. That's actually how they zero-ed in on the perpetrator's location," Mr. Hardy told the group

"That's awesome dad!" Frank declared.

"Yeah, I know son. I think that about wraps up the case, except for some paper work. With their confessions they will probably making deals for their time in the joint, it's just a case of how much they will sell out their coworkers," Fenton answered.

"Hah, of course," Joe added.

"Dad how were the families chosen? Or are they still looking into that?" Frank asked.

"One of the men rounded up worked as a janitor in a few of the establishments the families frequented. He apparently mentally categorized them or something to that extent we assume as vulnerable, especially the ones that didn't need any bad press as well as the broken families that were more terrified of losing a child and didn't want to trust anyone, even the police."

"That's crazy!" Joe exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know. Hiring henchmen to intimidate the families really paid off, only one disobeyed the warning, but the guys just left the kids and everything afraid of it being looked into further. That's where officer came in to clean up their messes. Apparently some of the families that were contacted did talk to police, but were dismissed by Alan," Mr. Hardy continued.

"Wow, what's going to happen to him?"

"Not too sure yet, but definitely he'll be in jail."

The conversation had dwindled down after that. There was an elephant in the room, everyone could feel that a topic was being tip-toed around. So the weather was the safe subject, but didn't last too long.

"Anything from Brandon?" Mr. McDowell spoke up that was his main concern, besides keeping his little girl safe.

"Sam saw Brandon the other day and spilled the beans that he was in cahoots with Elena. He had no idea where she could be heading," Fenton told his old friend.

"I just couldn't believe Brandon was in on this. I'm actually going to see him this afternoon at the hospital," Kailey's father declared.

"Dad, do you think that's a great idea?" she asked, glad he had answered her before.

"I need to let him have a piece of my mind. After that I can really relax." Kailey sighed, he's wasn't one to argue with.

"Alright, then what am I going to do? When are we heading home?" she asked.

"You want to leave us so soon?" Joe asked, smirking.

"Well, this has been one crazy week. I can't even imagine what would happen if I spent another week here," Kailey retorted.

"You got us there," Frank remarked.

"Well, hun, I'll leave it up to you," her dad interjected as he started to leave the table.

"Leave what?"

"The choice to stay or leave. Didn't you finish most, if not all work that was due for school. If you only have some more finals to take, I'm sure the school will understand and the principle ahd already agreed to let you take them in the prescence of a trusting adult."

"Are you serious?" Kailey exclaimed, extremely surprised. Usually her dad was a bit on the controlling side. She'd really be safe in Bayport from Her?

"Yes, I would never joke about things like this," her dad said with a big grin across his face.

"You're awesome dad!" Kailey replied, jumping up to hug him.

"So does that me a yes?" asked the inquiring minds at the table.

"Yes, I think so," she looked at her hosts, "If that's not too much to ask of Mr. and Mrs. Hardy. Everyone is still in class no matter where I go. And having the choice, I'd rather like a relaxing week after the one we just had."

"When's Aunt Gertrude coming?" Frank asked.

"Not until the end of next week dear," Laura told him.

"Sweet! Though Kailey, I think you'll like her, she's quite the spit-fire!" Joe jumped in the conversation.

"Yes, of course Joe! Kailey you're welcome here as long as you want to stay!" Fenton interrupted Joe.

"Thank you!" Kailey said appreciatively to the Hardys.

"That's settled then!" Laura declared. "You can stay here another week!"

"Thank you so much, Fenton," Mr. McDowell said embracing his friends separately, "Laura."

"It's not a problem! Now go! Before the roads get too busy!" Mrs. Hardy urged him.

"Yes, of course, bye sweetie!" he said walking to the front door, smoothly throwing on his large coat and slipping easily into his boots.

"Bye dad!" she replied. Then she turned around and looked at the Hardys. They were sitting around the table laughing with each other. What a wonderful family, she thought, this'll be nice!

"Come on slow poke!" Joe's call-out broke Kailey out of her thoughts and he motioned her over.

She gratefully obliged and joined the Hardys at the table, her new home away from home.

**A/N:** Please review and let me know of any errors:) I hope everyone has a fantastic summer!


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